


we lived without knowing one another

by softtofustew



Category: Day6 (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Future, Cute, Fluff, Jaehyungparkian, Light Angst, M/M, Strangers to Lovers, Suspense, Thriller, also this fic includes some other dudes, because why not, if you squint a bit - Freeform, ikr like what, last-minute fluff turned thriller fic, like subtle angst, makes it messier but eh, not really but he's a dad, side dopil, sungjin issa dad, text!fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-20
Updated: 2018-07-22
Packaged: 2019-05-26 00:15:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 22,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14988596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/softtofustew/pseuds/softtofustew
Summary: all jae wants is @foxeye's real name (and maybe another chat or two).alternatively, jae gets more than he could have ever bargained for.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> so!! this is like my first semi-textfic just to fill the jaehyungparkian tag so please don't bash @ me :'))))) some futuristic stuff along the way btw! i do hope you enjoy reading!!
> 
> ((btw the spacing bOTHeRs me but idk how to adjust it like i've tRIED A BILLION TIMES IM SORRY))

**sunday, july 11th 2088**

**[ 09:02 ]**

now, jae _could’ve_ gotten a double-shot latte directly from his worn-out couch back in his flat, but sungjin had kicked him out of the house with a lecture, saying something about - in his exact words - “always lounging at home; i know we have food delivery but get some sunshine, you’re fucking pale” - thus enter jae, flanked out in an oversized sweater and ripped jeans despite the sunshine gleaming down the skylines of seoul.

as he walks into the shop, the aroma of freshly brewed coffee fills his lungs, lingering in the air of the dimly lit coffeehouse. barely anyone is in the shop; those who are sat at the scrubbed pine tables tap away at their computers or stare out the window - though jae knows better.

the cashier at the counter greets jae courteously with a smile, her eyes hidden behind orange contact lenses.

jae readjusts his gold-rimmed glasses. _@idratherbesleepingrn, rania kim, 19 years old, just finished her college exams, working to save up for 2 concerts in november._

 

 **@idratherbesleepingrn** welcome to coffeebrew! i’ll be taking your order today. just enter your drink :)

 

with a quick glimpse at the counter, a screen lights up immediately, the choices displayed as icons with their names shown underneath each image. jae doesn’t blink as he taps twice on latte, then clicks the option for double-shot. the price appears in bold numbers at the top: $8.90. with that, jae pulls his wallet out, handing over a ten to the lady.

 

 **@idratherbesleepingrn** would you like a receipt with this?

 

 **@chickenlittle_jae** nope

 

the cashier nods, before calculating the change and handing it to jae.

 

 **@idratherbesleepingrn** thank you! your drink will be ready in 3mins

 

she grins, and as jae turns to sit next to the window, he hears the coffee machine behind her whir to life.

ding! _1 new message from sungjean_

jae slumps into a seat looking out at seoul, puzzled as to why sungjin is texting him. he blinks twice.

 

 **sungjean** did you get your coffee?

 

 **jaelittle** just ordered

 

 **sungjean** oh

 **sungjean** cos wonpil and dowoon want coffee too

 

 **jaelittle** tf

 **jaelittle** we have _directfood_ for a reason

 

 **sungjean** oh

 **sungjean** oh yeah

 

 **jaelittle** tsk

 **jaelittle** ur so 2050

 

 **sungjean** shaddup

 

jae sighs, removing his glasses from his eyes, momentarily stunned for a while. shit, he forgot to turn off the night filter on his spectacles after scrolling through youtube yesterday, no wonder. he rubs his eyes furiously, changes the settings on his glasses before putting them back on.

maybe he should explain why he doesn’t wear contact lenses like the other people currently in the coffeehouse: because his eyes get red and itchy from the lenses, and also. he likes human interaction. ever since the new cultured technology of communication took the world for a revolution, streets were short of people, more went out of employment, less actual, physical talking took place.

the fact that you just needed to blink once, twice, or thrice, look left, right and a few other features to take you through a virtual world has always been viewed as skeptical by the older generations - jae gets it. no talking, just direct messages you saw as pop-up text bubbles on people through your lenses.

like a comic book.

jae, a radio producer for the silent studio segment of his company’s radio station, has always favoured human talking rather than virtual interaction, always. but ever since the younger generations began at this new revolution of communication, he’s been forced into this new technology, too.

ding! _1 new dm from @idratherbesleepingrn_

 

 **@idratherbesleepinrn** your order is ready for pick-up!

 

jae scrambles to his feet and shuffles over to the pick-up counter, his sneakers squeaking against the marble tiled floor. another person is stood at the counter, and jae almost drops his coffee cup at the sight of him.

he’s _gorgeous_.

as casually as possible, jae pretends to fix his glasses, instead clicking a tiny button on the rim of his specs to take a quick picture. right at that moment, the boy turns to him, dark eyes staring right at jae, and jae almost screams from surprise.

“h-hey,” jae suddenly blurts out. (he completely forgets about the direct message feature. dang it.)

surprisingly, the stranger grins. “hey,” he answers back, his voice baritone, smiling.

_holy shit._

jae stutters over his words, trying to choose the right ones to form a new sentence. he tries once, twice, (“i-i um you look-”) before rushing right out of the door, leaving the stranger and @idratherbesleepingrn in the dust - staring in confusement.

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 09:24 ]**

the instance jae arrives home - he ignores all notifs from sungjin as to why he’s run past the kitchen like a triathlete, and hurriedly turns down all invites from wonpil and dowoon to come join them in the living room and play league of legends - he rushes into his bedroom in a blur, flops himself down across his bed and opens his photo gallery.

the stranger is drop-dead gorgeous, and jae has to recheck that he isn’t some celebrity, because _god_. his hair matches his eyes - a dark colour; since when was dark brown so captivating? - which glimmer brightly. high cheekbones, warm smile, pretty dimples… shit, jae’s a sucker for dimples. broad shoulders, framed by a short-sleeved shirt wrapped perfectly around biceps, and full hips.

wow. _wow_.

jae glances left for his background information (maybe he can send him a text? maybe) when he realises with a rather dull throb that the stranger’s profile is kept private, only revealing his username: @foxeye

he frowns, taking note of the lock icon over the direct message option. sighing deeply, he takes his glasses off and rubs his eyes. _i should’ve just continued where we left off then_ , jae thinks, regret filling his heart.

as he wears his glasses back on, his lens lights up. _ding! 1 new message from_ **_fantastic four_ **

 

**_fantastic four_ **

 

 **sleep pill** jaehyungie~ come join us for lol !!

 **sleep pill** its no fun without you :’)

 

 **dowin** yeah hyung come join us

 **dowin** ignore my contact name :)))

 

 **evil papa** you 2 just want to beat jaehyung

 

 **sleep pill** no

 

 **dowin** no

 

jae grins.

 

 **jaelittle** pshh nah

 **jaelittle** feelin out of it today :)

 

 **sleep pill** nuu TT what happened hyung

 

 **evil papa** did something happen

 **evil papa** @ coffeebrews

 **evil papa** ?

 **evil papa** i mean you ran past me jn

 

 **sleep pill** ooOOOH

 

 **dowin** sneaky

 

 **jaelittle** yo

 **jaelittle** it ain’t like that

 

 **dowin** isnt that what you say

 **dowin** like whenever you lie

 

 **sleep pill** yeah

 **sleep pill** like that time rmb u were dating joshie

 

 **jaelittle** don’t you dARE

 

 **dowin** oh yeAH

 

 **jaelittle** bring it up

 

 **sleep pill** and when we saw u 2 tgt

 **sleep pill** you said it aint like that too

 

 **dowin** and then two days later

 **dowin** we saw yall on the couch

 **dowin** omg im still scarred

 

 **sleep pill** nasty

 

 **evil papa** kids

 **evil papa** wonpil dont say that

 **evil papa** dowoon dont even THINK about then

 **evil papa** youre still a child

 

 **jaelittle** i beg to differ

 **jaelittle** they’re of legal age y’know sungjin

 

 **evil papa** under my roof they arent

 

 **jaelittle** anywaaaaays

 **jaelittle** nothing happened

 

 **evil papa** so explain to me

 **evil papa** why did you leave your latte in kitchen

 **evil papa** it’s getting cold

 

 **jaelittle** fUCK

 

 **evil papa** AH HAH

 **evil papa** meeting @ the kitchen now

 **evil papa** \+ 5 bucks in the swear jar pls

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 09:54 ]**

“so,” sungjin claps his hands together, closing his eyes for five seconds to deactivate his lenses, before opening them and grinning at the other three. “this is a _code j_ meeting this morning-”

“-why did y’all label me as _code j_?” jae groans, exasperated. he’s certainly not looking forward to having to relay his latest (failed) human interaction with a stranger in a public area.

from opposite the table, wonpil and dowoon yawn simultaneously, before turning to face each other. “jinx! jinx!” “you owe me a-” “-sprite!” dowoon finishes proudly, chest puffing up like a proud little rooster. jae has to refrain himself from rolling his eyes at his younger friends.

beside jae, sungjin sighs softly. “you know why we’re here: our daily morning interaction, starting with figuring out what jae encountered this morning,” sungjin announces all too cheerfully, like a commentator at a winning football match, his eyes shining - or maybe it’s his dark grey contact lenses.

“it’s seriously nothing, man-”

“-really?” wonpil counters, a smirk forming its way across his boxy face. “then explain this.” with that, he winks at the screen, framed on the kitchen wall behind jae and sungjin. the screen comes to life, and a video plays.

“wait-” jae glares at wonpil. “you hijacked my glasses? you little shi-”“-technically,” dowoon interrupts, his voice cracking slightly. “we’ve all got access to each other’s lenses, if you’ve forgotten.”

“for god’s sake,” jae mutters irately under his breath, trying his best to cower under his thick sweatshirt as the video plays: it’s from jae’s point of view, glancing at the pick-up counter, taking up the coffee cup… and glimpsing at said stranger.

“ _oh_ ,” the three of them say in unison, awed by the stranger’s presence.

from beside jae, sungjin murmurs, “who is _that_?”

“he looks really pretty, hyung,” dowoon remarks, who receives a jab in the ribs from wonpil. wincing, the youngest glances over at his boyfriend. “you too, pirrie,” he adds, guilty.

the video shows the exact moment when his glasses snapshot the picture, and the pair of them burst into peals of laughter; sungjin forces a stoned expression on his face but can’t seem to shove away the grin breaking across his face. he eventually chuckles, and the background of laughter from the two younger boys reverberates throughout the kitchen.

“wow,” wonpil gasps out in between subsiding laughter. “y-you even took a picture of him.”

“creep,” dowoon adds.

“stalker,” wonpil giggles.

“now, now,” sungjin clicks his tongue, but it’s evident that he’s rather amused about the situation too. a mortified jae glimpses away, red hot blood rising to fill his cheeks. “we shouldn’t, um, make fun of hyung,” he finishes. “we should… um, support jae in his pursuit for this stranger instead.”

jae wants to strangle sungjin.

“i don’t even know his name,” jae blurts out.

the trio of them stare at jae, baffled.

“his profile is private?” sungjin questions.

“can you direct message him?” wonpil quizzes.

“do you have any idea who he is?”

jae wrings his hands together nervously. “yes, no, and definitely no,” he replies, before swivelling around in his chair once, twice, thrice. “i mean, yeah, he’s gorgeous and everything, but i don’t even know his name! how am i supposed to contact him?” jae sulks.

a thoughtful expression etches itself over sungjin’s face. “maybe… maybe he actually cut off from virtual communication?”

jae frowns, his eyebrows furrowing.

the other clears his throat. “i mean, if you block direct messaging, that means he has to physically talk, right? i barely know anyone who entirely blocks off direct communication, especially when it comes to ordering food at restaurants and whatnot, hm?”

silence envelopes the kitchen as the others process sungjin’s words. dowoon is the first to speak up. “y’know, sungjin hyung, you’ve got a point there.”

wonpil’s eyes light up. “jaehyung, maybe you can try and go back there tomorrow again? maybe he goes there for coffee every day, like you do, but you order via directfood, right?”

jae groans. “and risk getting embarrassed again?”

“you want to know the stranger’s name,” sungjin counters, his eyebrow raised, “you’ve got to take risks for it.”

 

**_______________**

 

  **[ 17:36 ]**

like so, sungjin insists for jae to do grocery shopping today - it’s his turn this week - hence jae puts his earphones on as he strolls into qq grocer, the mid-afternoon sun still shining strongly, filtering through the glass windows of the grocer. he takes up a basket and hums along to the song playing as he scans the list sungjin’s given him.

 _eggs_. obviously, because wonpil and dowoon ransacked the egg carton last week making (and failing) steamed egg. jae glimpses at the shelves along the aisles until he stumbles upon several stacks of egg cartons. he scans the information via his glasses (expiry year: 2090) and picks up a carton, placing it gently in the basket.

as jae continues, making his way through the list, he doesn’t notice the stranger attempting to grab the cereal box high up in the shelves until he glances up, almost bowling him over in the process.

“oh,” jae starts, surprised, before looking up at the cereal box: froot loops. he takes his earphones off. with ease, he stretches his arm up, and, being a bit taller with longer limbs, jae manages to retrieve the box and is about to hand it to the stranger when realisation dawns upon him.

“o- _oh_ ,” jae stutters, startled. _it’s @foxeye._

@foxeye turns to face him, grinning. his eyes gleam, merry, and jae notices with a skip of the heart that this stranger really lives up to his username, his eyes pointed and sharp, but with a sort of warmth to them, too. “thanks,” he says, his voice steady and joyous, and smooth. jae wants to turn his audio recorder on, but instead gets flustered when the stranger reaches down and takes up jae’s basket.

“how about i help you, jae?” he asks, his lips turning upwards, and for a second jae’s surprised as to how he knows his name, then internally smacks his head. of course, he keeps his profile public and open to everyone to slide into his dms.

jae offers a small smile. “thanks, but i think i’ve got it covered,” jae replies courteously, before reaching out to take up the basket. as his fingers curl around the handle, @foxeye doesn’t move; instead he nods, and - jae swears he sees him smirk - wraps a hand over jae’s.

jae can’t breathe.

@foxeye rubs a thumb over jae’s knuckles, slowly, once, twice. heat crashes in multiple waves over jae as they meet gazes again. “you play guitar or something, jae?” the stranger asks.

_what?_

“uh,” jae fumbles with the basket handle as the stranger releases his grip on it. “y-yeah? 

@foxeye cocks his head a little, as if seeing jae for the first time, before shrugging, taking up his cereal box. “your hand’s a tell-tale sign,” he replies, and then offers one last grin. “anyways, i’ll see you around, mr park.” with that, @foxeye struts off, leaving jae flustered, sheepish and absolutely baffled in the cereal aisle of the grocery store.

later on, as jae makes his way back home, he almost crushes the eggs in agony upon realising that he missed his chance. again. _goddammit._

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 20:42 ]**

**_fantastic four_ **

**pirrie** jae why r u sulking in ur room

 **pirrie** oml

 **pirrie** did you ???!!!!

 

 **evil papa** did he what

 

 **woonie** oh em gee

 **woonie** did you see @foxeye ????

 

 **evil papa** did you?

 

 **jaelittle** nice couple names guys

 **jaelittle** (pukes)

 **jaelittle** and no…….

 **jaelittle** okay maybe

 

 **pirrie** i knew it!

 

 **woonie** ooh~

 **woonie** do we have a name now?

 

 **jaelittle** um

 

 **evil papa** i bet you chickened out

 **evil papa** geddit geddit

 **evil papa** ‘chickened out’

 **evil papa** cos youre like

 

 **jaelittle** i get it

 **jaelittle** you can stop the dad jokes, sungjin

 

 **pirrie** HAHAHAHAHAHA

 

 **woonie** hyung why didnt u ask for his name :0

 

 **jaelittle** what was i supposed to do???

 **jaelittle** he was reaching for froot loops

 **jaelittle** he couldn’t so i helped

 **jaelittle** i diDN’T KNOW IT WAS HIM OK

 **jaelittle** :’(

 

 **woonie** then what did he say???

 

 **pirrie** then what did he say?

 **pirrie** JINX JINX JINX [sent 21:44:09]

 

 **woonie** JINX JINX JINX [sent 21:44:11]

 

 **pirrie** HAH

 **pirrie** YOU OWE ME A COKE

 

 **evil papa** ew coke

 

 **jaelittle** uh

 **jaelittle** he was like thanks

 **jaelittle** tHEN HE OFFERED

 **jaelittle** TO CARRY MY BASKET

 **jaelittle** THEN I SAID NO

 **jaelittle** THEN

 

 **pirrie** WHAT R U DOIN OMG

 **pirrie** JUST ACCEPT HIS LOVE

 

 **jaelittle** THEN I TOOK THE BASKET

 **jaelittle** THEN HE

 

 **evil papa** [caps lock malfunction?]

 **evil papa** [caps lock malfunction]

 **evil papa** THEN???

 

 **woonie** jae wyd

 

 **pirrie** jaehyungie did u die

 

 **evil papa** NO

 **evil papa** I HEAR HIM

 **evil papa** SQUEALING FROM THE BEDROOM

 **evil papa** HOW DO I TURN THIS CAPS LOCK THING OFF

 **evil papa** [exit caps lock malfunction]

 **evil papa** oh

 

 **woonie** oh

 

 **pirrie** oh

 **pirrie** JINX AGAIN HAHAHA

 

 **woonie** dangit

 

 **jaelittle** sorry went to the toilet

 **jaelittle** oh

 

 **evil papa** ;;)))))

 

 **jaelittle** :’) oops

 **jaelittle** um

 

 **pirrie** STOP UMMING JUST SAYIT

 

 **jaelittle** he put his hand over mine

 **jaelittle** then he just

 **jaelittle** rubbed his hand over mine

 

 **pirrie** woah

 **pirrie** 0 - 1000

 

 **woonie** lmAO

 

 **evil papa** rubbing his hand what

 

 **jaelittle** i don’t know wjdbjewid

 **jaelittle** he was like

 **jaelittle** “you play guitar or smtg”

 

 **pirrie** oh my

 

 **woonie** sexy

 

 **evil papa** DOWOONIE

 

 **woonie** what

 

 **evil papa** youre a baby

 

 **woonie** i’m fucking 23

 

 **evil papa** that’s $10 in the swear jar, dowoon

 

 **pirrie** SCREW THE JAR

 **pirrie** WHAT DID YOU SAY

 **pirrie** @ jae

 

 **jaelittle** I SAID YEAH

 **jaelittle** THEN HE WENT

 **jaelittle** “your hand’s a tell-tale sign”

 

 **evil papa** is it just me

 **evil papa** or does that sound super creepy

 

 **woonie** sounds weird

 **woonie** but eh he’s hot so

 

 **jaelittle** ;-;

 

 **pirrie** jae

 **pirrie** dont you have silent studio tonight

 

 **jaelittle** yeah

 

 **pirrie** it’s past nine

 

 **jaelittle** so

 **jaelittle** oh

 **jaelittle** OH SHITSHITSHIT

 **jaelittle** GOTTA FLY BYE

 

 **evil papa** put the money in the swear jar on ur way out

 

 **woonie** what r we even gonna do with the swear jar

 

 **evil papa** saving up (?)

 

 **pirrie** but it’s our money (?)

 **pirrie** is jae gone alr

 **pirrie** i heard the door slam

 

 **evil papa** yeah

 **evil papa** oh

 **evil papa** OH MY GOKDJWI

 

 **woonie** HYUNG YOU LEFT

 **woonie** YOUR WORK TAG BEHIND

 **woonie** ITS ON THE KITCHEN TABLE

 

 **pirrie** gg

 

**_______________**

 

  **[ 21:18 ]**

jae is so so _so_ goddamn fucked.

“shit, i swear i-” jae almost groans aloud at the memory of him plonking his work tag on the kitchen counter before reaching into the fridge to cook for dinner an hour or so ago. without his work tag, he can’t gain access into the building, unless by some miracle that one of his co-workers strolls along. _stupid_ , jae thinks, because it’s only him and jimin in the studio tonight-

he checks his feed again, and sighs as he stares at his tweet.

_tune in to silent studio at 9:30pm KST! will be answering live tweets as per usual_

how will listeners react tuning into _actual_ silence?

“interesting,” a familiar voice wavers from behind jae, and jae swivels around, almost knocking heads against @foxeye. _may i thank the three sisters of fate who have wound my fate of tonight like so-_

“h-hey!” jae forces himself to plaster a wide grin across his face despite being close to internally melting down due to both the fact that he’s standing right _here_ looking absolutely stunning in a work shirt and slacks, and due to the fact that he was supposed to clock in ten minutes ago. “um, nice to see you! again!”

the stranger arches an eyebrow before lifting his work tag to the scanner. the door swivels open, and @foxeye grins, stretching out an arm. jae realises how unmistakably close they are when he leans in and says into his ear, “after you.”

jae blushes harder than he ever has in his 25 years of living.

“you work here?” he asks incredulously as they step into the building, making their way down the hallway.

“well,” the stranger shrugs. “today’s my first day. and now, i guess, my first night,” he chuckles, and jae has to steady himself from swooning. _wow._ “i just got transferred here; i was previously based in daegu but they moved me to seoul. i work under business management here.”

“oh,” jae breathes, taking all this information in. “well, um, that’s great! welcome to the team.”

@foxeye smiles wider, his dimples more prominent now. _(kill me now.)_ “thanks. anyways, shouldn’t you get going? silent studio starts in,” he pauses to glimpse at his watch, “six minutes.”

“oh,” jae says again, blinking. once, twice. “ _oh_ , oh god, i need to get going, shit.” he looks at the stranger one last time. “i-i’ll see you around!” he finishes frantically. he barely waits for @foxeye’s response as jae practically sprints down the hallway, up the stairs- screw the lift, it takes a decade to get to the seventh floor - pants his way to clock in before crashing into the studio to face a rather infuriated jimin.

jimin crosses her arms. “jae? really? last week you were ten minutes late, you’ve got three minutes before silent studio starts up.”

breathing heavily, jae rests his hands on his knees, exposed by his ripped jeans. sweat beads dotted on his forehead begin to slide down his face. “sorry. forgot. left my work tag behind.”

at this declaration, jimin arches an eyebrow. “so who exactly let you into the building?

“um,” jae clears his throat. “someone under business management. new noob.”

“huh,” jimin responds, before shaking her head slightly as if dismissing the topic ,and jutting her chin out in the direction of a stack of papers on the metal counter. “your script, as per usual. get some water, we don’t want a panting dog on set and rolling in the next one and a half minutes.”

sighing deeply, jae takes up the script, the letters on them almost foreign as his mind fills only with @foxeye, and @foxeye only. _three meet-ups already, still haven’t got his name._

god knows when jae will work up the courage; possibly, never.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> twitter: @softtofustew_  
> curiouscat: @softtofustew_


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which jae is (still) a coward of sorts.

**monday, july 12th 2088**

**[ 07:53 ]**

when sungjin shuffles into the kitchen early, pyjama-clad, he pauses mid-yawn at the sight of jae dressed and all ready, all ironed band tee and ripped jeans scrambling eggs in the goddamned hour of - sungjin has to check the time twice, no, thrice - before 9 am.

“goood morning, papa!” jae chuckles as he swishes the pan around a bit more, spatula in his hand. the inviting smell of eggs and the sound of sizzling leads sungjin to sit himself down, too surprised to speak a syllable. “slept well last night?”

“um,” sungjin starts, chokes on his saliva. clears his throat. “yeah. interesting to see you wide awake at this time,” he adds.

jae grins widely, showing off all his teeth. the screen behind jae is turned on to the news, suspiciously enough, and sungjin is almost sure something is up as jae slides a plate of scrambled eggs across the table. “there you go, sungjin. scrambled eggs by yours truly.”

 _since when does jae wake up early, get dressed and make breakfast in such a jiffy?_ sungjin wonders as he pokes at his eggs with a fork. “thanks?” he responds, too puzzled to say anything else as his eyes scan the screen. a minor tram incident in ulsan yesterday night rolls on-screen. another thing: _since when does jae watch the morning news?_

“is breakfast ready already?” wonpil pokes his head inside the kitchen, the same bewildered expression etched across his face. his eyes almost bug out at the sight of jae flipping the pan once, twice. “hyung, you’re cooking _already_?” sungjin watches as wonpil’s jaw almost clatters to the ground.

dowoon emerges at the kitchen doorway too, his eyebrows raised in surprise. “hyung, why are you up so early?”

cheerfully, jae swivels around, pan of readily made eggs in his other hand. “and why not? i’ve got a meeting at 9 today!”

sungjin narrows his eyes at the boy in suspicion. jae’s smile is too wide, too forced; sweat is dripping off of jae’s forehead, his eyes crinkled too much. as the younger ones settle into their seats whilst jae is serving them, sungjin notices the screen remote on the small metal counter beside the kitchen table. swiftly, he takes it up and points it to the screen.

“no!” jae suddenly screeches, shocking the other three. sungjin almost drops the remote. “i mean,” jae swallow, hard, “i wanna listen about the ulsan incident- sungjin what are you doing-”

too late. sungjin clicks to the home-viewing option, and a video immediately begins playing. wonpil and dowoon lean sideways to look past jae, who’s attempting to block the screen from their view. “isn’t that hyung’s workplace?” dowoon points out.

it is. the outside of it, that is.

from jae’s point of view, the camera recording pans down to the work tag scanner at the main entrance of the building yesterday night. strings of curses bellow through the overhead speakers, and jae has to hide his face when the other three realise it’s a recording from jae’s glasses, again.

“is this from yesterday night?” wonpil muses, his ears perking up eagerly.

the video continues, with another voice heard. _“interesting.”_ “oh my god,” wonpil squeals. “is that who i think it is?”

the camera pans upwards and focuses on @foxeye’s face, eyes bright against the dark night background, lips pulled upwards into a mischievous grin, and all three of them are talking all at once, stunned, startled - in wonpil’s case, squealing.

“holy shit, holy shit!-”

“-isn’t that-”

“-the same dude from yesterday?” dowoon finishes, his voice cracking slightly. “hyung! this must be fate already!”

jae sighs, snatching the remote from sungjin and clicking the screen off, leading to a string of whines from the younger ones. “it’s not fate; it’s just a series of coincidences.” god, jae’s cover-up wasn’t good at all; sungjin definitely saw through him. sue jae for re-living through yesterday’s meet-up, alright? plus. @foxeye looks undeniably hot in slacks. (okay, jae admits he _did_ replay that part of his lenses recording his ass in those slacks.)

a bemused look replaces the startled one on sungjin’s face. “coincidences? so it’s a coincidence that he works in your building?”

“he just moved here from daegu-”

“-ah hah!” sungjin abruptly shouts, sticking his finger out in jae’s direction. “if it isn’t fate, then how can this all be?” he begins counting with his fingers. “you see him once in a coffee shop, thanks to me, by the way. you see him the second time at a grocery store, which, by the way, is thanks to me again.and you see him a third time at your own office building!” sungjin shrugs. “i don’t know about you, jae, but i think it’s fate.”

“meant to be,” dowoon pipes up in between mouthfuls of scrambled egg.

jae chews on his lip. when did sungjin, the most practical one out of the four of them, believe in fate? “okay, then if it’s fate, why have i not gotten his name yet, even though i’ve seen him, like, three times already?” he points out.

“because you’re a wimp,” wonpil inputs from the kitchen counter, and sungjin has to restrain jae from smacking the younger one’s head. (“rule four: no violence in this house!”)

“pillie has a point, hyung,” dowoon adds, shrugging. “hyung, you’ve got to man up and get his name and number! then it’s meant to be,” he chuckles, his face bright, hopeful.

sungjin shuffles over to jae and slaps a hand on jae’s back. (and almost hurtling him towards the kitchen wall.) “you have that meeting, don’t you? get your coffee at coffee brews, walk up to your company building, storm inside and gather the courage to ask for his name. we’re supporting you, jae,” states sungjin, a grin across his face.

“hyung, fighting!” wonpil and dowoon giggle in unison, smiles equally wide.

jae feels his heart stutter against his rib cage. _yeah, he can do this._

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 08:31 ]**

he can’t do this.

 

**_fantastic four_ **

 

 **jaelittle** guys

 **jaelittle** i can’t do this

 **jaelittle** i’m @ coffee brews

 **jaelittle** window seat

 **jaelittle** he just came inside

 

 **_pirrie_ ** _changed this group chat name to_ **_#roadtojaeslove2088_ **

 

 **_evil papa_ ** _changed this group chat name to_ **_#youcandothisjae_ **

 

 **pirrie** oi

 

 **jaelittle** gUys tHE grP chAt nAMe cAN wAIt

 

 **woonie** dont panic hyung

 **woonie** act natural

 **woonie** be subtle

 

 **jaelittle** i don’t mean to be rOOd

 **jaelittle** but i think i knew that alr dowoon

 **jaelittle** FUCK HE’S WALKING TOWARDS

 **jaelittle** ME FUCK

 

jae doesn’t even wait for sungjin’s admonishing; he immediately glances down at his fingers on the table, cracking them subtly.

the chair beside him creaks as someone sits himself down.

_oh my fucking go-_

“is it just me,” the stranger starts, and jae glimpses to his right, his gaze falling upon @foxeye, eyes bright and dancing, lips pulled into a quirky grin, “or is it weird that we keep bumping into each other within four days of me moving in to this city?” his tone is light, playful, but jae tenses up all the same. how is he supposed to answer to that?

 _c’mon jae. whip out that i’m-a-radio-presenter-who-answers-spontaneous-questions-on-the-spot attitude of yours!_ “huh,” jae starts, wringing his hands together again. “maybe blame it on fate?” he replies jokingly, his voice kept as nonchalant as possible whilst the hummingbird in its cage of his ribs titters away rapidly.

@foxeye chuckles, his eyes crinkling, dimples showing - man, jae might never get tired of those dimples. “fate, hm? i didn’t know you were a believer of fate, mr park,” he counters, before his eyebrows furrow together. “or should i be formal and call you jaehyung-nim? hyung? i’m not entirely familiar with korean honorifics.”

jae almost bursts out into laughter. _jaehyung-nim?_ as if anyone will ever call him that. “nah, you can stick to jae. and don’t worry about honorifics, i’m a californian boy, born in argentina.”

the stranger’s eyes glisten. “i know,” he answers, a bit amused. “it’s in your bio.”

 _god-fucking-dammit_. jae lets out a weak laugh. “yeah, whoops. i write so much in my bio i forget it’s there,” he comments, his hands getting clammy as the seconds tick by. things can’t get more awkward than this, right?

 

_ding!_

 

 **@idratherbesleepingrn** order up!

 

“let me just get my order first,” jae says, more hurriedly than he should, for he gets to his feet and bangs his exposed knee against the metal leg of the table. “ouch, ouch, _fuck_ ,” he hisses, pain shooting up his leg in electric sparks.

concerned, @foxeye stands, too, and places a hand on jae’s shoulder to steady him. (warm, warm hand, jae takes note.) “you okay?” he asks, and jae realises with a flutter of his heart, the genuine concern laced in the stranger’s voice as @foxeye leans down and inspects the damage. “hm. looks like it’ll sprout a bruise soon, but no cuts.”

he glances up at jae, who positively blushes red all over in humiliation. of course he has to show him his clumsy side within less than 24 hours. “you’ll live,” @foxeye adds, shrugging as he gets up. “just a bit of purple you’ll be showing off at work today.”

“huh,” jae answers, feeling worse than before.

 

_ding!_

 

 **@idratherbesleepingrn** order up!! :)))))

 

fuck the chins.

jae attempts to hobble over to the pick-up counter, but before he does, the stranger catches him by the wrist, fingers curling around the skin around jae’s hand. alarmed, jae swivels around to catch the expression on the other’s face. “i’ll go get your drink,” he pipes up, dropping the hand after a few moments. “i think my drink’s ready, too. yours is double-shot latte, right?”

speechless, jae nods. @foxeye smiles briefly before striding up to the counter to retrieve two coffee cups placed on the sleek counter, and all the while jae slumps down into his seat, the feel of the boy’s fingers emblazoned in jae’s memory for a long, long time.

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 09:38 ]**

“and,” jimin’s voice booms with an assertive tone, resounding throughout the cramped meeting room. “it has come to my concern about several matters on the rise here.”

jae has to stifle a yawn as jimin runs through some protocols, almost tipping backwards in his chair, and has to cover up the yawn with a weak cough, to which jimin shoots a glare at. jae sighs, playing with the pen in his right hand, twisting it around. he’d come to the building eagerly, with high hopes for a staff meeting alongside @foxeye, but upsettingly business management was a whole other department, and now jae’s sat with his co-workers, fellow radio producers of other segments, all sat in a long table in the meeting room.

_ding!_

 

 **_wooer_ ** _changed this group chat name to_ **_jimin use the grp chat alr_ **

 

from across the table, kevin shoots jae a playful wink, and the two glimpse at jimin at the head of the table, and giggle at the exact moment she sees the notification. “no, i will not; these matters are better voiced verbally.”

 

 **bee am** rookies got a point, jiminnie

 **bee am** use the grp chat man

 **bee am** dont needa strain ur voice

 

 **studioj** exchuse meh

 **studioj** we are not ‘rookies’

 **studioj** been in the goddamn radio for 3 yrs now

 

 **bee am** i’ve been here for 5 goddammit

 

jimin sighs. they know the exact moment when she finally complies.

 

 **jiminnie** alright you fuckers

 **jiminnie** yall win

 

 **iIlikesomeham** yeah boisss

 

 **jiminnie** sam shut up

 

 **studioj** don’t hurt the baby! ;-;

 

 **bee am** what’s the purpose of this meeting again

 

 **wooer** idk man jyp wanted it

 

 **studioj** a bit of a waste of time amirite

 

 **jiminnie** shaddup jae

 **jiminnie** dont talk about time

 **jiminnie** when u urself was late ystd

 **jiminnie** yOU WERE THIS CLOSE TO GETTING FIRED

 

 **ilikesomeham** whOAAAA

 

 **bee am** i like this tea

 **bee am** spill it

 

 **studioj** look folks

 **studioj** there’s no tea

 **studioj** i was just late

 

 **wooer** that’s not what i heard from jimin

 

 **studioj** what

 

 **jiminnie** ;))

 **jiminnie** guess who decided to check cctv cameras last night

 

 **bee am** OH SHIT

 

 **ilikesomeham** oHHH DAMN

 

 **wooer** woah woah woah

 

 **studioj** you did not

 

 **jiminnie** oh yes i did bb

 **jiminnie** :D

 **jiminnie** and guess who forgot their work tag ystd

 

 **bee am** as expected of park jaehyunggg

 

 **jiminnie** and guess who let him into the building?

 

 **ilikesomeham** this shit getting deeper

 **ilikesomeham** he hacked the system???

 

 **bee am** cmon sam

 **bee am** jae’s not that smart

 

 **wooer** oh shit BAHAHAHA

 

 **studioj** jimin don’t you dare

 

 **jiminnie** thank god for our face recognition feature

 **jiminnie** because guess who jae flirted with last night

 **jiminnie** *cough cough* tried to flirt with

 

 **bee am** don’t tell me

 **bee am** youre getting back at it with josh

 

 **wooer** what

 

 **ilikesomeham** isnt he with that dude in design management

 

 **studioj** no

 

 **jiminnie** he flirted with a rookie ystd

 

 **bee am** ohhhh shit

 

 **ilikesomeham** jimin dont leave us hanging yo

 **ilikesomeham** spill alr

 

 **studioj** jimin i will strangle u

 

 **jiminnie** try me

 **jiminnie** [insert image]

 

 **wooer** holy shit

 **wooer** he’s hot wtf

 

 **ilikesomeham** oh shit

 **ilikesomeham** i think i saw him @ lunch ystd

 

 **bee am** wowie

 **bee am** since when did we have a model in the industry

 

 **studioj** *weeps aggressively*

 **studioj** urgh ,,,,

 **studioj** you didn’t have to xpose me yknow ;-;-;-;

 

 **bee am** whos this dood

 

 **jiminnie** i looked him up in our records

 **jiminnie** kang younghyun

 **jiminnie** he goes by brian

 **jiminnie** noob started in business just ystd

 

 **wooer** wowie mama

 

 **ilikesomeham** jae gettin that boi

 

 **bee am** jae why’re you red all over

 

jae barely sees through the string of texts appearing on his lens as the letters form and clutter in a disarray in his brain.kang younghyun. brian kang. a slow smile forms on jae’s lips, his heart palpitating a bit faster. _brian kang younghyun._

 

 **jiminnie** stop staring like that jae

 **jiminnie** u look weird

 

 **ilikesomeham** our boy is in lurrrrve

 

 **wooer** woah woah woah

 **wooer** lit

 

 **studioj** iT AINT LIKE THAT

 

 **bee am** youre blushin pretty damn hard lover boy

 

jae blushes harder, whipping off his spectacles. “it’s not like that guys,” jae protests, though his tone _is_ rather unshaky, uncertain. the other four crack up at his tomato red face.

sam shakes his head furiously, white-dyed hair floppy. “no way, bro. you should see how red you are now.” he giggles, before elbowing kevin beside him. “boy hasn’t blushed that hard since he dropped that stack of papers in front of joshie boy.”

jae’s so-called friends burst into laughter, jimin keeling over before straightening herself up, though still heaving for breath. “look, jae,” jimin starts in between subsiding laughter. “brian’s pretty hot; i bet he’s nice too, from the looks of it. i say you suck it up and go for it, man. about time you felt the love all around again-”

“-ew, you make it sound over-sappy, jimin,” kevin interjects, leading to jimin poking a tongue out at him. (jae wonders how they’re all past the age of 20...) “what she’s _trying_ to say is, get that di-”

“-boy,” matthew interrupts, smirking. sat beside jae, he slaps jae’s back. “get ‘em, brother.”

 

_ding!_

 

 **_ilikesomeham_ ** _changed this group chat name to_ **_geddit lover boy_ **

**_jiminnie_ ** _changed your name to_ **_loverboy_ **

 

“for pete’s sake,” jae mutters, but he doesn’t argue.

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 13:06 ]**

“hottie kang at 9 o’clock,” kevin hisses into jae’s ear, making him jump on the spot, yelping. heads turn in the direction of him, and jae almost pisses his pants when he sees @foxeye - wait, um, what’s his name again? brian? - staring right at him on his left, smirking. he’s stood in work clothes again, lingering around with a group of people under business management.

_for fuck’s sake._

jae blinks twice, all the while avoiding eye contact with either kevin or brian, instead focusing on the tiled floor as they walk down the hall.

 

**_geddit lover boy_ **

 

 **loverboy** for fucks sake woo

 

 **matchmaker 1** sorry!!

 **matchmaker 1** i didn’t know you’d jump like that

 

 **matchmaker 2** lmAOOOO

 **matchmaker 2** the whole hall was staring right at you

 

jae kicks the back of jimin’s shin, earning a muffled yowl from her. they keep walking.

 

 **matchmaker 3** maybe we should go out for lunch

 **matchmaker 3** with bm

 **matchmaker 3** geddit geddit business management

 **matchmaker 3** and bm

 

 **loverboy** ok we geddit

 **loverboy** you can stop the corny jokes matt

 

 **matchmaker 4** why am i matchmaker 4

 **matchmaker 4** :’(((

 

 **_matchmaker 2_ ** _changed_ **_matchmaker 4_ ** _’s name to_ **_cupid_ **

 

 **matchmaker 2** happy now

 

 **cupid** wait wait wait

 **cupid** does that mean that

 **cupid** i have to ask business to tag along

 

 **matchmaker 2** ;))))

 

 **loverboy** fFS DON’T DO THAT

  


**matchmaker 1** too late

 

 **matchmaker 3** he’s already logged in with jaehyeong

 

 **loverboy** who tf is jaehyeong

 

 **matchmaker 2** his bf ;))))

 

 **cupid** hES NOT MY BF

 **cupid** he said yea they’ll tag along

 

 **loverboy** this is weird

 **loverboy** i dont rmb ever communicating with business peeps

 

 **matchmaker 1** lmao same here

 

 **matchmaker 3** about damn time tho

 

 _ding! you were added to_ **_radio business_ **

 

 **jaejae** so where r we gonna eat

 **jaejae** oh shit there’s another jae here wtf

 

 **studioj** tf why can’t we just get _directfood_

 **studioj** fuck wrong grp

 

immediately jae deletes the messages, but from the familiar voice tinkling with laughter in the background, jae knows he’s fucked up too late. he flushes a deep pink, blabbers about going on a diet, and hurriedly ducks into another hallway away from the others, away from further humiliation.

 

**______________**

 

**[ 13:48 ]**

lonely, that’s what jae is, slouched over his seat at the outdoor cafe on the rooftop of the building, overlooking the expansive skylines of seoul. the cafe was set up to encourage workers to eat together, but clearly that idea hasn’t exactly soared over cloud nine, with jae being the only one, slurping on cup ramen.

_whoopedee-fuckedee-do._

the wind rustles his hair a little, and jae flips his hair a little. He should dye it back to blonde soon; silver isn’t really his thing. and get a haircut, asap. The nape of his neck is getting pretty itchy as the days go by.

 

_ding! 1 new dm from @bribri_

 

puzzled, jae blinks twice to open the chat, another time to add his contact name.

 

 **bribri** hey

 

 **studioj** hey (?)

 **studioj** sorry if i sound rude

 **studioj** but who are you

 

 **bribri** haha

 **bribri** turn around dork

 

an impending sense of doom settles in jae’s bones, like in a horror movie, and has to turn his body around ever so gradually, hoping an axe murderer isn’t holding a guillotine over him, and instead is met by a not-so-stranger stranger standing in front of him, work slacks and all.

_holy shit balls._

“h-hey again,” jae stammers, his tongue tied, jaw slack as brian slides into the booth seat beside him, his lips pulled into a quirky grin. “i thought you went out with the others.”

brian lifts a shoulder (broad, broad, shoulder) in a shrug. “well, you kind of ran off alone, and i was kind of wondering, since your friends didn’t go after you,” he explains casually, his head resting on his hand. “wanted to check on you, i guess.” and enter, a fluttering butterfly kicking up dust in jae’s precious heart.

jae gulps. “what about lunch?”

“i ordered from directfood.”

“but wait…” jae glances left for background information. the lock sign isn’t there anymore. “i  thought you cut off from direct messaging.”

as soon as the words leave jae’s lips, jae suddenly realises how stalker-ish that must sound, as if he spends all his free time staring and memoring brian’s profile. (no, he did not fall asleep while staring at the video from yesterday.) (okay, maybe he did.) but brian simply lifts his eyebrows before speaking, “oh, that? my co-workers complained about that this morning, said that i need to keep my profile open in their workspace, which is pretty ridiculous,” brian sighs. “personally? i’m not all that into the new cultured eyelenses. sorry if that offends you.”

“no, no,” jae sets his chopsticks down, before turning to face brian properly. “i like, like, _actual_ talking too.” he sets his glasses down. funny, because whilst the grey skylines against sky blue are blurry to the eye, the face of his new-found friend remains crystal clear. pretty. “my flatmates and i even have sessions where we sit down and actually talk to each other. i’m not saying the new technology is bad, it’s just…” his voice trails off as jae tries to find the right words.

“... just that some of us have become too reliant on the lenses?” brian finishes, grinning.

“yeah, that,” jae grins back, his heart know doing loop-de-loops in the cage of his chest.

brian tilts his head to the side, before stretching out his arm. before jae blinks again, brian’s hand envelopes jae’s hand laid on the table, and it takes all of jae not to combust right there on the spot. _holy shit balls-_ “y’know, jae,” brian chuckles, his head leaning in. hot breath fans his left ear. “my lenses are still on. i can see your heart rate through them.”

when brian pulls away, jae’s on the edge of melting, but realises with a surprise brian’s pinker than usual cheeks, as if he himself were embarrassed too. “I think i’ll get going,” brian adds, his tone more sheepish than just a few seconds prior. “my food’s ready.” he smiles a bit wider. “i don’t think i’ve introduced myself properly. the name’s brian. i’ll see you around, jae.”

with that, brian scrambles to his feet, and it’s around this moment that jae’s mind fights battles. the angel and the devil appear, flanking on either side of him; the angel urges jae to just finish his damn lunch, the devil hisses to gather his composure and say-

“brian,” jae blurts out, too late to change his choice. brian swivels around.

“yeah?-”

“-can i text you? maybe sometime later?” the question tumbles from jae’s lips, too quickly for him to process through it, too slowly for him to perceive. he watches as brian’s eyes light up, the tips of his ears flushing redder.

“i thought you’d never ask.”

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> twitter: @softtofustew_  
> curiouscat: @softtofustew_


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which jae can't see the saying, 'don't cross this line'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you can totally see the last-minute angst and suspense i'm putting into this chapter for dramatic effect... not sure if i can handle this plot myself lmAO I'M SCREWED FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER TT

**tuesday, 13th july 2088**

**[ 02:52 ]**

 

 _you have 9 missed calls from_ **_hottie kang_ **

 

 **hottie kang** jaeeeeeeeeeeeee

 **hottie kang** hi jaeeeeeeeeee

 **hottie kang** pick upppppppppp

 **hottie kang** i miss ur fousterd luukss :”))))))))

 **hottie kang** flusted*

 **hottie kang** flushh*

 **hottie kang** flustereddd*

 **hottie kang** jaeeehyungggg

 **hottie kang** hyung ah

 **hottie kang** will u b @ work tmrr

 **hottie kang** :33333

 

**[ 06:49 ]**

 

 **hottie kang** oh my god

 **hottie kang** i’m so sorry jae

 **hottie kang** ignore the messages, i’ll delete them

 **hottie kang** coworkers dragged me out for drinks ystd

 **hottie kang** i drunk called you

 **hottie kang** i’m so sorry

 

**[ 07:03 ]**

 

 **hottie kang** but will you be @ work today though

 **hottie kang** just asking haha

 

**_____________**

 

**[ 07:56 ]**

 sungjin is startled awake from his sleep at the crash of a body hitting the ground in his bedroom.

“what the hell, jae?” sungjin screeches at the top of his lungs (that’s quite a bit, if we’re talking about sungjin’s incredible voice range) as he scrambles out of his bed to inspect the damage to jae, who lies on the ground. instead of writhing around in pain, the older boy simples lays down there, his eyes wild and haggardly as they stare at their plain white ceiling.

sungjin bites his lip. “jae? are you possessed? hello?”

slowly, very, very, slowly, jae supports himself up, before curling into a ball, all the while allowing awkward silence to settle in the air of their dorm room. freaked out by his out-of-place character, sungjin lowers himself down, kneeling beside his roommate. “hyung? jae? are you alright? did you hurt yourself? did you-”

“-what. the. fuck,” jae finally whispers, softly, the words sharp but desperate all the same as he lifts his head. “sungjin…”

sungjin frowns, confusion scribbled all over his expression, but when his eyes fall upon the gold-rimmed glasses discarded carelessly on the top dresser drawer beside jae’s bed, curiosity sparks up. the younger one picks the glasses up and furrows his eyebrows together at the image on the lens. “jae… who’s ‘hottie kang’? why do you have _9_ missed calls from him?”

“drunk called.”

“oh my,” sungjin blinks as he scrolls with his eyes. “that’s a lot of 2am messages. he says he deleted them though?”

struggling to process the situation himself, jae lets his head loll against the edge of his bed. “I configured my glasses to screenshot everything anyone sends me when i sleep; remember that time wonpil pranked me and that demon child deleted all evidence at goddamn 4am?” jae buries his head in his hands. “but this time-”

“-is it that brian kang dude you mentioned about yesterday?” sungjin guesses, though in his heart he knows the answer well and full enough.

jae nods his head.

sungjin chuckles, before ruffling jae’s morning hair, fluffy and soft. “all i can say is, the both of you are whipped for each other already. don’t worry too much about it, jae. you’ll get to him someway, somehow.”

 

**_____________**

 

**[ 10:03 ]**

 

 **jaelittle** oh hey

 **jaelittle** drunk call? Should i be worried?

 

 **hottie kang** oh don’t worry

 **hottie kang** i always call ppl when i’m drunk

 **hottie kang** you’re not going to be here today?

 

 **jaelittle** nope

 **jaelittle** i work on mondays, wednesdays, fridays and sundays.

 

 **hottie kang** :((

 **hottie kang** also

 **hottie kang** why’s my contact name

 **hottie kang** “hottie kang”?

 

 **jaelittle** oh

 **jaelittle** uh

 

 **hottie kang** ;D

 

 **jaelittle** i think my friend played arnd w my glasses

 **jaelittle** sorry

 

 **hottie kang** no no don’t be sorry

 **hottie kang** let’s keep that name

 **hottie kang** it describes me fully y’know

 

 **_jaelittle_ ** _changed_ **_hottie kang_ ** _’s name to_ **_ego kang_ **

 

 **ego kang** hey

 

 **jaelittle** *shrugs*

 

 **ego kang** you wound me jae :(((

 

 **jaelittle** tsk

 **jaelittle** get back @ your work ffs

 **jaelittle** aren’t you at work

 

 **ego kang** yeah

 **ego kang** but like

 **ego kang** since i’m a noob they’re not piling me

 **ego kang** on my first week

 **ego kang** so i’m almost done

 

 **jaelittle** lucky ass

 **jaelittle** i rmb my first day there

 **jaelittle** and they asked me to script write ok

 **jaelittle** write the scripts for the radio presenters

 

 **ego kang** must’ve been hard for you

 **ego kang** want me to come patch that boo boo for you?

 

 **jaelittle** stfu

 

 **ego kang** ;))

 **ego kang** i bet you’d like that

 **ego kang** i bet you’re blushing so hard rn

 

 _well,_ jae muses, his cheeks heated up. _he’s not wrong about that part._

 

 **jaelittle** i bet you’d like patching me up huh

 **jaelittle** bet you’re blushing so hard thinking about that

 

 **ego kang** woah

 **ego kang** since when was this a flirtationship

 

 **jaelittle** exchuse meh

 **jaelittle** you started it

 

 **ego kang** you played along though

 

 **jaelittle** touche

 

 **ego kang** ah shit

 **ego kang** manager screaming his head off atm

 **ego kang** i’ll text you later?

 

 **jaelittle** yeah

 **jaelittle** wait

 

 **ego kang** what

 **ego kang** type faster he’s getting closer

 

 **jaelittle** do you wanna have dinner tgt

 **jaelittle** no sweat just yknow

 **jaelittle** asking haha

 

 **ego kang** yeah sure

 **ego kang** no sweat

 

when jae logs off, he rolls around on his bed, screaming into his pillows, leaving wonpil and dowoon in the next room confused, baffled, and sungjin rolling his eyes obnoxiously, with the faintest of a ghost of a smile on his lips. _no sweat, my ass._

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 17:32 ]**

“hyung?” as the mid-afternoon sun filters through jae’s bedroom blinds, dowoon pops his head into the room, shirts and pants of all colours and designs discarded everywhere: from the study table to the carpeted floor, from the headboard of the bed to the pile on the cupboard floor. “uh, hyung, sungjin-hyung was aski-”

“-don’t talk to me right now,” jae murmurs under his breath irately, currently digging through the pile of band tees he’s piled together on the edge of his bed. he takes up a one republic band tee, inspecting it carefully. “too dark,” he comments, before placing it on what dowoon suspects is the ‘rejected’ pile on sungjin’s once well-made bed.

cautious, dowoon steps into the room, blinking a few times to take in the sight before him. “jae, do you want me to-”

“-if you’re not going to help me choose my outfit, i’m sorry dowoonie, i’m kinda busy here,” jae interrupts, his back still facing dowoon. the older one retrieves a white tee, his lips pursed tightly. “ugh, too plain,” he sighs, tossing it to the ‘rejected’ pile.

“i can help,” dowoon juts in, shuffling over to where jae is kneeling and running through the clothes. “wow, hyung, i didn’t know you had that many-”

“-shush, woon,” jae hisses, before holding up yet another tee, this time a light grey with the letters across it spelling out, ‘hold me tight or don’t’. “do you think it screams fanboy or angst?”

dowoon blinks. “uhhhh… angst?”

“for _fuck’s_ sake,” jae grumbles, passing the tee to a stunned dowoon. “he said ‘wear something casual’; do you think a tee shirt and ripped jeans is casual or underdressed? i don’t even know where we’re going to eat!” his mouth runs a mile a minute, nerves racing as he searches through the pile of clothes. “too bright, too light, ew, this has a coffee stain,” jae cringes, tossing all three tees in dowoon’s direction.

animatedly, the younger one attempts to catch them all. “uh, jae? who’re you seeing?”

at last, jae swivels around to meet dowoon’s gaze, his eyes wide. “ _the_ @foxeye. younghyun. brian. the hottie brian,” he answers overdramatically, his hands waving dismissively in the air. “i can’t fucking believe he even accepted to go dinner with me.”

“woah, hold up,” dowoon breathes, almost wordless. “you’re going on a date-”

“-technically, i didn’t say date, more like dinner-”

“-with that cute stranger?” dowoon finishes. he’s too shocked to say more. _hyung actually got his_ name _?_

“yes!” jae sighs, his voice turning mushy. “oh my god, dowoonie, can you believe it? because i can’t.”

“if you can’t believe it, i don’t. at all,” dowoon scoffs, but his lips involuntarily break into a grin. ever since a harsh break-up with tears (from jae) and exasperation (from the other three), dowoon has been hoping his hyung would find love once again, instead of lounging around the house and moping over the daily soap opera. he’s always wanted jae, the one who laughs at his corny jokes, the one who takes care of dowoon when he’s ill, to be happy.

with that in mind, dowoon sets the clothes down on the floor, and stalks to the cupboard. he aimlessly goes through the hangers, before an article of clothing catches his sight. he takes it up, inspecting it a bit. _will jae like this one?_ dowoon wonders.

he decides to take the chance, and swivels around.

“jae ah,” dowoon calls, causing jae to face his way. “what about this one? it looks good.”

“huh,” jae responds, scrambling to his feet and walking over to dowoon to check the shirt out. it’s short-sleeved, a light grey with faded letters spelling out ‘we could stay young forever’. aesthetic with a tinge of angst, jae muses. “i’ll try it out, then. thanks, dowoon,” he replies with a grin, reaching up to ruffle dowoon’s hair, retrieving the tee and skipping into the bathroom.

dowoon smiles to himself before exiting the room, leaving jae to his excitement for the night.

 

**_______________**

  
**[ 18:27 ]**

 **jaez** hey

 **jaez** you here yet

 **jaez** wtf did you change my name????

 

 **hottiek** yupp

 **hottiek** give me a sec hon

 **hottiek** just got off the public bus

 **hottiek** whatre you wearing

 

 **jaez** uh

 **jaez** light grey shirt ripped jeans

 

 **hottiek** ofc

 

 **jaez** woah

 **jaez** hold up

 **jaez** what does THAT mean

 

 **hottiek** nothing

 **hottiek** it’s just

 **hottiek** i see you wear ripped jeans all the time

 

 **jaez** are u saying

 **jaez** u dON’T want me to wear ripped jeans?

 

 **hottiek** nah

 **hottiek** #freetheknee

 

 **jaez** lmAO

 

 **hottiek** seriously though

 **hottiek** your knees are cute

 

 **jaez** i’m not sure how to reply

 **jaez** is that a compliment or a creepy pick-up line

 **jaez** ?

 

 **hottiek** maybe a bit of both?

 **hottiek** anyways

 **hottiek** i rounded the corner

 

 **jaez** wha

 **jaez** i don’t see you

 

 **hottiek** hm i see a chicken head poking out of the crowd

 **hottiek** yup that’s you

 

 **jaez** excuse me

 

 **hottiek** hold up

 **hottiek** 3

 **hottiek** 2

 

jae feels a light tap on the shoulder, and turns around to face brian - he almost disintegrates into dust at the sight of him, all bright smile, white tee and light blue jeans, his hair floppy and soft as if he’d just rolled out of bed. (would it be weird to run his fingers through that? jae decides against it, and instead takes a deep breath or two.)

“hey there,” brian chuckles, waving a hand. “nice shirt. didn’t know you were into fall out boy.”

“oh?” adrenaline pumps in jae’s veins to the thumping beat of his heart drumming away. hot _and_ good taste in rock music? jae feels his grave being dug just a couple more feet deeper. “y-yeah, they’re a good band. not top of the top, but somewhere there.”

arching an eyebrow, brian asks, “favourite band, then?”

“uh. heard of this band? day6? kinda old, to be honest; way before 2050, but i love rock music with a burning passion,” jae admits more passionately than he should’ve. maybe he sounds like a duck quaking away, but he’s pleasantly surprised by brian’s thoughtful grin spreading across his face.

“hey, i like them, too,” brian adds, bemused, leaving jae pinker than the evening colours over the expanse of the sky overhead. as the summer breeze kicks up, rustling through the high top trees along the walkways, brian shakes his head a little, as if banishing a thought from his head. “anyways. i was thinking where we could have dinner, y’know, before meeting you here.”

‘here’ refers to them just outside the shop window of coffee brews, and jae ponders for a while, wondering how all some words sungjin had said had led them to this very moment, barely even three days after their first encounter. he gets shyer by the thought of it.

attempting to muster up his courage, jae clears his throat before speaking. “so where were you thinking about eating?”

“a diner, like, a short walk from here. you mind taking a stroll?”

“nope,” jae answers, his lips can’t help but breaking into a smile. “lead the way, hotti- i mean, uh, brian.” jae curses his blatant mouth and his blunt train of thought, and is thankful when brian doesn’t further tease him on the matter, instead giggling and walking ahead.

the two walk, side-by-side, a friendly distance in between them that jae tries to ignore thinking about closing as they stroll along the walkway. he nervously shoves his hands into the pockets of his jeans, not knowing what to do with them. beside him, brian strides confidently, his grin never fading from his face as he stares ahead. “somewhere here; i haven’t been here since i was like, five.”

“you lived here before?” jae asks, curious. “what’s up with the move, then?”

brian shrugs. “lived here until i was, like, ten. moved up to daegu,” he replies with a dry laugh. “anyways, if i remember correctly, the pizza there’s pretty good. you into pasta?”

“um, yeah, kinda,” jae responds half-heartedly, curling his fingers into fists as he stuffs his hands deeper into his pockets. all the while as they walk, jae tries and tries - and ultimately fails - to banish the fact that brian hadn’t answered his last question. an odd swirling in his gut stirs up, and jae mentally does an _uh oh_.

 _trust your gut feeling_ , jae always tells his friends. _something is always bound to happen._

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 18:49 ]**

“you did _not_ ,” jae almost bursts into giggles again as he takes up his soda, shaking his head at brian. “i can’t imagine you arguing with someone, let alone get into a full-blown _fight_ with them. that’s ridiculous,” he concludes, before taking up his straw, his eyes never leaving brian’s incredulous expression. sat in the 80’s style western diner is a bit of a heaven, jae has to admit: the dim light makes brian’s eyes glisten even brighter.

brian scoffs. “please. what do i look like to you, a wimp?”

“a business management dude who probably rotted his days away in the pages of a textbook, that’s what,” jae counters cheekily, having way too much fun as he twirls another forkful of pasta on his plate. “correct, i presume?”

“uh, _no_ ,” brian snorts, leaning back in his seat, crossing his arms. (jae tries, okay? tries not to stare at the lines running down the expanse of the other’s forearms, but they’re nice arms.) “i took up dance in lower sixth, then switched to the gym in college, so i am _not_ a wimp,” he retorts, his grin widening. “if you don’t believe me, i can go against you, like, right now.”

jae almost spits out his food. “uh, i think i’m good?” he coughs a little on the meatball before swallowing, his face flushed redder.

brian chuckles, before allowing them settle into a silence as jae finishes up his plate of pasta while brian glances out the window at the passing vehicles. when jae glimpses up, he catches sight of brian’s ear, the prettiest of silver hoop earrings adorning it, but even more surprisingly, an earpiece. is he listening to music right now? listening in on someone?

 _is he_ stalking _someone?_ jae wonders, quickly snapping his head to the window, peering out the glass, only to see vehicles and the odd passer-by strolling by, none seeming to linger in the vicinity. _cut it, jae, you’re thinking way too much-_

“you finished?” brian asks so abruptly then jae does a small jump, squeaking a bit. brian giggles at jae’s antics. “calm down, it’s just me.”

“oh,” jae murmurs, his head spinning a little. must be the pasta. “split the bill?”

after a quick pay, the two stumble out of the diner, bellies full. a little eager to keep the ball rolling, jae turns to face brian, a smile across his face. “so i was thinking we could walk around a bit more? maybe introduce you to seoul and everything, if it’s okay with you? and i know where the best bingsu is-”

“-look, uh,” brian abruptly cuts jae short, scratching his hair. sweat rolls down brian’s forehead. sweat? “do you mind if we just end the day here? i mean, i was just expecting dinner; i didn’t expect both of us to get so carried away…i’ve got some work to clear up tonight?”

 _what happened to lack of work, newbie?_ nevertheless, jae forces himself to keep the smile going. “yeah, sure, no problem, i-”

 

_ding! 1 incoming call from sungjean_

 

“oh, uh, let me take this,” jae interrupts apologetically, before blinking twice to answer the call. the top right corner of the lens blips, showing sungjin’s face, red… are those tears down his cheeks? “uh, sungjin? you good, man? are you-”

“-jae, jae,” sungjin’s voice, filled with anxiety, runs through jae’s mind. “it’s wonpil, he’s-” he clears his throat. “he’s… i don’t know, weird? like he was playing overwatch with dowoon and apparently he just… got up? he looks possessed. we tried shaking him… he’s still s-standing there, in the living room.” sungjin sobs, and jae’s heart hurts worse. “i d-don’t know, jae, can you please come home? i’m so sorry, i-”

“-don’t be, i’ll be on my way,” jae cuts his short, before chewing on his lip as he ends the call. he faces brian. “look, uh, my roommate’s a bit wonky at the moment, so it’s all good if we end today.”

“no.” brian’s voice is ripped of lightness, instead sharp. frantic. worried. anxious? “what happened?”

“um, my friend? a bit possessed at the moment? probably video game-induced.”

“no,” brian bites his lip in anguish. jae watches with alarm as brian's eyes darken. “take me to your place. now.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> twitter: @softtofustew_  
> curiouscat: @softtofustew_


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which jae realises how much he doesn't know, all the same. they'll be alright. they'll figure things out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> istg i'm so bipolar with this fic i'M SO SORRY THAT I TURNED IT INTO A MESS there's like a billion things yall needa find out in this chapter // prepare your heart because it goes from angst to fluff to angst back to fluff UWU

**sunday, 13th july 2088**

**[ 20:23 ]**

one thing jae has always, _always_ been sure of: that sungjin is a practical person, always has his composure gathered; never one to break down emotionally, never one to show vulnerability as easily as others. so. _so_ jae’s heart hurts one fuck ton as he swings the front door open to reveal sungjin, teary-eyed, cheeks flushed as he sits on the ground, back against the wall. anxiety runs the creases on his forehead.

upon their arrival, sungjin scrambles to his feet hurriedly, before striding over and enveloping jae in a tight embrace. warmth seeps from the younger boy before sungjin releases his hold on jae, a wretched look on his face.

“i’m so sorry to disturb you, jae, but i really-”

“-no, don’t worry about that. where’s wonpil now?” jae interrupts, his eyes darting down the hallway. beside him, brian looks equally, if not more antsy, and shoves past sungjin as he rushes down the hallway.

sungjin blinks, snapped out of his trance. “is that… brian kang? the dude you’ve been pining over these days?”

jae pats the other’s back. “well, yeah, but not now, okay? we’ll talk more later,” he tells sungjin, before dashing past him down the hallway after brian, before emerging in the living room. stood pliant in the middle of the room is wonpil, the game console long been abandoned on the carpeted floor, a blank expression over his usual boxy smile. by his side, dowoon shakes wonpil’s arm, his eyes watery.

god-fucking- _dammit._

“wonpil ah, wonpil.” dowoon’s voice cracks a little, and jae can’t bear to look at the boy’s face, worry scribbled all over.

brian presses the earpiece even tighter, jae notices, before the boy turns to face wonpil, his eyes assessing wonpil’s face. “what happened exactly?” he questions, turning to dowoon fiercely. even jae is a little stunned by his sudden assertive tone.

dowoon, too, is surprised to see the same boy jae was mooning over just a few hours prior, but shakes his head and answers, “we were playing overwatch, and i think about half an hour ago, he just… stood up. dropped the console. blank expression. he hasn’t moved ever since.” his eyes are watery with tears, but dowoon swallows them back.

a sigh tumbles from brian’s lips as he peers closer, his eyes still on wonpil’s face… more specifically, his eyes. “what’s his surname?”

“what-”

“-his surname, please,” brian cuts off jae sternly.

jae blinks. “kim. kim wonpil.”

“for _fuck’s_ sake,” brian curses, his lips pulled tightly in between his teeth as he steadies his hands on wonpil’s cheekbones. his fingers lift up and-

“woah, what the _hell_ are you doing-” before jae can complete the sentence, brian’s fingers are already steadily, surely, removing wonpil’s contact lenses, the transparent glass out of his right eye, and in an instance wonpil is staggering, his posture sagging as his footing goes loose. dowoon screeches in fright as wonpil’s right arm and leg begin flailing around, but brian holds him tight as he removes the other lens.

wonpil topples backwards and hits the couch in a fall.

in that moment, sungjin emerges in the room and his jaw clatters to the ground - okay, to be fair, everyone is shocked - as brian simply drops wonpil’s lenses and gives one mighty step over them, crushing them into pieces.

“yo, what the heck?” wonpil hollers in disbelief, immediately on his feet again. he curls his hands into fists. “look, fox, or brian, or whatever jae calls you! you don’t just take my lenses out and fucking _crush_ them into bits; do you know how much they-”

“-what they cost,” brian interrupts smoothly as he bends down to take up a piece of the broken lens, “does not matter. in fact, i think i just saved your life, kim wonpil.”

“i need to sit down,” dowoon concludes, the stunned expression still on his face as he slumps onto the couch, followed by an equally shocked sungjin. only jae stays rooted to the floor, the past events in such a short span of time still circling like vultures in his mind. confused. baffled. he faces brian, and his heart tugs at how different brian looks: firm. authoritative. perturbed; uneasy.

just as jae’s lips part to form a syllable, brian steals his words in a dropped hush, “you’re wondering why i stormed in here like a madman, right?” brian presses his lips together into a tight line. “to be frank, i’m sorry if i’ve been acting suspicious this whole while, jae. this is a stupid way to reveal myself.”

reveal himself? what the fuck? “what the fuck?”

“look, there’s not that much time to explain, because if the kims are being taken over, parks are a rather compromising next target,” brian cuts in, his voice back to worry. his eyes scan sungjin. “park sungjin, please take out your lenses. either throw them or crush them, now.” shocked speechless, the boy simply removes his lenses before stomping on them. wordlessly, dowoon follows suit, assuming whatever is to happen to them will be the same to himself.

“jae, you-”

“-take off my glasses. yeah.” problem is, jae, unlike the others, actually needs the eye power, and as he removes his spectacles, brian turns into a blur before him. he then seats himself down on the floor.

brian sighs deeply, again, before removing his own lenses and earpiece. his eyes still glisten brightly, jae muses, though now with a different light, more worry than wonder. “i don’t work under business management, and i never did see jae under coincidences. i’m actually in charge of an ongoing case now regarding the lenses.” he juts his chin out at the glass scattered in a disarray across the living room floor. “someone’s recently started hijacking the lenses with bad intentions. seoul was a target city, so i was moved here and worked in jae’s workplace, a huge target for the hijacks.”

jae doesn’t know what to say. all he ever wanted was @foxeye’s real name, and maybe another chat or two. not tracking down some grand scheme to take over the world via the accessory he depends on for sight.

of all people, he had to pine over a goddamn _spy_.

shattering the silence, sungjin pipes up. “uh, so… then why jae? why linger around jae?”

even in his blurry state, jae watches as brian turns to glimpse down at him. “we’re not sure who, but someone gave a tip off. something about jae getting hijacked while on live radio. maybe to release a message. when someone hijacks your lenses and takes full-on control, they have complete access to your account, and you’ll be numb. pliant. you can’t do anything.” he explains. “after seeing jae at the coffee shop, i dropped a tracker pill in his coffee cup. i’ve been tracking jae ever since.”

“hold up one second. you put a fucking tracker in me?” jae asks incredulously. his brain almost explodes. “so you’ve been _stalking_ me all this time? this doesn’t make any sense!”

 _but it does,_ jae gradually realises. the puzzle pieces fix themselves together, falling into shape. how they kept bumping into each other at _just_ the right moment, at the same place, at the same time. how brian had followed jae up to the rooftop of the building, with (now that jae thinks about it) a half-assed reason. how brian had agreed to dinner, just to be alongside and track jae’s route, and having to leave almost immediately after.

brian takes note of jae’s expression on his face. “it doesn’t give me reason to have done that to you, though. i’m sorry, jae,” he mumbles apologetically, wringing his hands together.

“no, don’t be,” jae insists, getting onto his feet before shuffling over to brian. without any warning, jae sneaks his arms slowly around brian, himself just tall enough to rest his head against brian’s hair, tickling his nose. exactly how jae had imagined hugging brian would feel like: comfort and warmth and sunshine and soft skin and hard muscle all in one, and jae lingers there. he pushes away the smile as brian wraps his arms around jae’s torso, his lips pressed against the crook of jae’s neck.

jae is never going to wash his collarbone ever, ever, again.

the clearing of someone’s throat breaks them apart. “sorry to break the hug fest, but does this mean that seoul is getting taken over by some hacker dude and jae is supposed to release some message via radio tonight?”

brian ponders for a bit. “we think so. we assume people are being gradually taken over by popularity of surname in seoul, and we’re guessing this guy is trying to form some sort of army with you guys under the control of the lenses-”

“-but hijacking someone’s lenses only gives them access to the account itself,” dowoon interjects pointedly. “how can hijacking the lenses give them full access of someone’s brain?”

“good point,” brian comments, “but we’ve done some heavy research. we can guess that hijacking the lenses means gaining access of the screen displayed across the lenses. by hypnotising the user, the user becomes pliant to the controller’s instructions.

“we suspect that the hijacker actually works as a group of people, and jae’s message over the radio tonight will signal the members to begin hacking into the lenses of those in other states, possibly even countries. it’s much more convenient and less risky than personally contacting each other, since we can figure out the coordinates of the hijacker like that.”

jae swallows. hard. “tonight? i don’t have work to-”

his glasses blink.

 

_ding! 1 new message from jiminnie_

 

shaking in trepidation, jae bends down to retrieve his spectacles, before peering carefully into the lens.

 

 **jiminnie** down with the flu brudder! :((

 **jiminnie** jyp asks you to take my shift tonight @9:30

 

“fuck,” jae whispers. “guess i’m saving the world tonight.”

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 21:04 ]**

has jae ever been caught in such a whirlwind of a plot to overthrow the entire world country by country? certainly not, jae reaffirms as both he and brian scamper up the stairs to the seventh floor, jae huffing and puffing like a dying seal whilst brian remains composed, hardly affected by the strenuous exercise. upon reaching the landing, brian offers an outstretched arm to jae.

“now you know why i say i can kick ass?” brian smirks - he has the audacity to smirk at jae, practically _mock_ him and brag about his oh-so-incredible stamina when jae’s whole body can get taken over in, like, 25 minutes. jae rolls his eyes.

“and kiss ass even better, i bet,” jae grumbles as he shoves open the door to the radio station for silent studio. “i can’t believe i didn’t suspect anything until today-”

“-’s called putting up a front, sweetheart-”

“-what the fuck,” jae cuts off, the pocket of his jeans vibrating. ever since their lenses had been utterly destroyed, sungjin had distributed backup phones to contact each other. (god knows where he gets the money to get them all some pretty good phone brands.) jae flicks his finger across the screen, the words a little hazy. he squints.

 

**_#savetheworldonejaeatatime_ **

 

 **breakdownjin** jae can you see this

 **breakdownjin** who changed the name ffs

 

 **hypnopil** DOWOON

 

 **shakeitwoon** not me!

 

 **superjae** aint me brudder

 **superjae** yes im alove with brian

 **superjae** alone**

 **superjae** ALIVE***

 

 **hypnopil** oOHH

 

 **brain kang** alright yall shaddup

 **brain kang** hijacking needs a close radius cos

 **brain kang** i’ve got firewalls on the building up

 **brain kang** so the hijacker would need to be in here to hack jae’s specs

 

 **breakdownjin** are you sure it’s a good idea to risk jae

 

 **brain kang** if anything happens i’m here to take them off

 **brain kang** the specs i mean

 

 **superjae** what else could you have meant

 

 **shakeitwoon** maybe your pants (?)

 

 **superjae** stfu

 

 **brain kang** shut up

 

 **hypnopil** ;)))))))))

 

 **superjae** i might like lose my brain in 15 mins

 **superjae** so

 **superjae** any last words

 

 **brain kang** i’ve got a good ass record ok

 **brain kang** you won’t die

 

 **breakdownjin** if you die

 **breakdownjin** i’ll make your casket silver with a lobster piece

 

 **superjae** finally! someone with some sense in him

 **superjae** now i kinda wanna die

 

 **shakeitwoon** ily hyung!! fighting~

 

 **superjae** thanks!!

 

 **hypnopil** my last wish

 **hypnopil** can the 2 of you get it on already thanks

 

 **_superjae_ ** _removed_ **_hypnopil_ ** _from this group chat_

 **_brain kang_ ** _added_ **_hypnopil_ ** _to this group chat_

 

 **brain kang** he’s not wrong

 

“what?” jae’s abrupt voice cuts the sheer silence in the radio station as jae glances up from his phone, his eyes meeting brian’s own gaze almost burning a mark on jae. without breaking eye contact, brian clicks the phone shut and slides it into his pocket, a small smile playing upon his full lips. (they are some pretty lips.)

eyes twinkling, brian leans a bit closer until jae’s arse is touching the edge of the metal counter, the younger’s arms forming a sort of cage on either side of jae’s body. “do you wanna know one thing i regret?”

“hm?” jae can’t breathe, his throat constricted, his tongue heavy. his eyes keep darting from the lips to the earrings to brian’s fox-like eyes, pointed and crinkled with years of time and work and sleep deprivation and life.

“i regret,” brian starts, his right hand brushing jae’s hip - jae swears he hears his heart leap ten feet up, “that i met you under such circumstances. i would’ve liked if we really got to know each other, if i really worked here under business management, if we really worked it out in the end,” he finishes, both hands know steady on jae’s waist.

jae swallows harshly, his adam’s apple bobbing. “i-in the end?”

“i’m moving to tokyo after this,” brian mentions, his voice faltering in and out of jae’s conscience. “maybe in a week, if this is a success. _when_ this assignment is a success,” brian corrects himself, shaking his head a little, before looking up again.

jae’s mind swirls, the crashes of the waves lapping the sands of his wonder. incredible, how three days with brian felt like a whole lifetime and a second all at once. from the grocery store and work to their brief rooftop conversation to their dinner under two hours ago… god, jae really has nothing to regret as he briefly leans closer to peck brian’s lips.

they taste exactly of fizz from the lemonade soda, mint on his breath, salt from his fries and of brian kang younghyun, so much so it hurts tremendously.

brian chokes out a laugh. “pathetic,” he mumbles, sealing the gap and kissing jae’s lips a little longer, just them in the radio station without a care for the world, just them and this kiss and their bliss.

 

_ding!_

 

 **shakeitwoon** so

 **shakeitwoon** are they kissing yet

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 21:28 ]**

 

 **superjae** heck yes

 

 **brain kang** ily too

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 21:29 ]**

 

“is it crazy that we lived without knowing one other?”

 

“isn’t it crazier that i’m more alive after i got to know you?”

 

 _no,_ jae thinks, as they kiss again. one more time for the win.

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 21:30 ]**

 

jae’s finger flicks on a switch. radio on. the silent studio theme music cuts in as jae fixes on his glasses, followed by his headphones. all the while, his gaze lingers onto brian, who simply presses the earpiece closer to his ear and gives jae a thumbs up.

_you’ll do good, jaelittle._

“aaaand good evening, folks!” jae’s voice reverberates into the mike, his voice kept casual and light as if his body won’t get hacked into in, like, mere seconds. one, two, three. “welcome to your daily - or nightly - session of silent studio! i’m studioj, and before we begin, a brief blessing to jimin mi amigo; she caught the damned flu so i’m covering for her tonight.

“so! tonight’s theme is, cue drumroll,” jae presses a button for the drumroll to cut in, “relationship problems! jimin’s asked y’all to send in your live tweets to @silentstudio_jyp, and no fear, fellas, i’m here to save you guys. crush mid-life crisis? friendships falling apart? arguing with your oh-so-stupid significant other? here to help!”

next to him, brian is typing something into a laptop he brought along, logging into the jyp building cctv cameras to pinpoint the whereabouts of said hijacker. jae tries not to sweat it as he resumes to scrolling through his lens twitter feed.

he clears his throat. “so! @iamdrum says, ‘my boyfriend and i just experienced a pretty traumatic moment, more to say my boyfriend was quite affected by it. how should i initiate conversation with him to comfort him?’” jae squirms in his seat. _fucking dammit, dowoon, you trying to give it away or something?_

“oh wow, serious topic here!” jae plasters on his concerned voice, when really brian beside him and the sound of keys tapping away is playing with jae’s mind. focus, focus. “start off soft, y’know. pour him a cup of his favourite hot drink, set the atmosphere, make sure he’s comfy with talking about it. don’t push it, my man, and you’ll be al-”

his lenses black out.

“ _fuck_ ,” brian hisses.

jae reaches up to lift the spectacles off, but the swirl of black and white fills the spaces of his lenses, and in a second he’s slumping into his roller chair, weak, immobile. brian cries out in anguish as he tries desperately, switching between camera screens, and immediately spots a person in camera 5 making a mad dash down the corridor. he takes a snapshot just in time before the person disappears from sight.

hurriedly, brian stands to rip the glasses from jae, but as he does jae gets up, a blank expression on his face as he suddenly swings an arm out at brian. “shit, no!” brian howls, dodging the blow. no, he cannot hurt jae, he can’t - jae kicks brian’s shin, and brian staggers backwards.

under the absolute control of the hijacker, jae aims a good punch on brian’s chest, but the other blocks it just on time, instead slamming jae against the wall, both hands lifting jae’s arms up to prevent jae from attacking him. Instead of using his legs, jae becomes pliant, a smirk growing across his lips.

“hello brian.” jae’s voice is monotonous, like a voice recording with no life in it. _shit no, no no-_ “nice to see you trying to save the world, hm?” wordlessly, brian struggles to keep jae’s arms down with only one arm, and has to stand, pushing jae flat against the wall. it shakes under their weight.

“nice to see you’ve fallen for this pretty stranger,” jae beeps out, and without warning, rolls his hips against brian’s. all heat rushes south - _no what the fuck brian this isn’t jae it’s a fucking hijacker slash pervert stop don’t_ \- “it’s so sad to see your new boy toy going against you, hm?”

jae’s lips now attach themselves to brian’s collarbones, and all the while brian squirms out of jae’s reach, trying to keep the boy pinned down. “isn’t it sad, too, knowing you’re going to fail this mission? oh, i didn’t tell you? daegu is being taken over just as i speak.” jae’s chuckle is dark, harsh, sharp as he kisses down brian’s neck. _for fuck’s sake stop-_

out of breath, brian slams jae down against the walla again, jerking his head away from jae all the same. “shut up already, you piece of shit,” brian hisses. “you’re not going to get away.”

jae cocks his head. “really? i’d like to see you try, brian. really, see, you can’t go anywhere now, you’re too afraid to hurt the love of your life that you met for, what, three days? how disappointing to see you.”

in his mind, brian does a mental research of everything he’s read about the hypnotising of someone via the lenses. scientists have proved that technology isn’t as cultured as most think yet; a person under attack via hypnotising by someone can snap out of it with the right words and right actions. flustered, he stares right into jae’s blank eyes. dull. bleak, out of life. “jae, jae, i know you’re in there.”

“hah!” jae guffaws. “you’re going to melt his heart with your words, hotshot? pathetic.”

desperate, brian seals every last gap between them, his arms now heaving from holding jae down for so long already. “look, jae, you’re somewhere in there. this isn’t you, i know it.” he takes a deep breath. “jae, remember when we first met? two days ago? i saw you in your oversized sweater - it practically drowned you - and your ripped jeans. i saw you, and i thought, ‘i’m going to save you, if it takes the life of me’. and then at the grocery store, you looked so pretty when you blushed, fuck.” his hands are sweaty, words genuine.

“am i supposed to sit through this romcom-”

“jae, shit, i still remember how i got drunk, and all i could think of was you, your smile and your voice and your laugh and your eyes. god, your eyes. all i could think of these past few days was you, you, you.” brian’s eyes are teary as he leans closer, lips brushing. “jae, i don’t care that we lived without knowing one another, i don’t care that i’m going to move away soon, because jae, i love you. so much.” he sobs. “please, come back to me.”

pin-drop silence surrounds the two as brian kisses jae again, his lips desperate and yearning to reach out to jae. as a moment passes, jae’s lips form gurgles of words, his brain fighting against the hypnotising, his hands and legs struggling harsher than ever.

and then.

jae slumps to the floor, gasping for breath as he rips the spectacles off and crushes them onto the floor. the lenses tumble out, fried, a spark going off before disappearing. brian kneels down beside jae. breathless.

“i’m so sorry i couldn’t-”

“-bribri,” jae whispers, his voice raspy, full of life. they meet each other’s gaze, eyes alive and dancing. merry. “spies can't take a fucking hint, can y'all? i love you too.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> twitter: @softtofustew_  
> curiouscat: @softtofustew_


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which jae and brian find their ways with each other, through each other

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's an intense climax and more revolutions woo!! i'm liTERALLY writing as i go so if it's messy i apologise :')))

**sunday, 13th july 2088**

**[ 21:41 ]**

 

“i’ve got the whole building on emergency lockdown,” jae announces as he types away furiously at the computer, his fingers flying across the keyboard. “you’ve got the guy, got his name and face, go get him. track him down.” with that, he tilts his head upwards to face brian and kiss him softly one more time on the lips.

with that, brian swivels around and is about to bolt out when he hesitates, instead turning to glance at jae. “hey, jae. i’m sorry that i couldn’t save you on time, i-”

“-hey,” jae waggles a finger at him, grinning widely. “i said: no apologies. you saved me in the end. besides,” he chuckles, cheeks flushed pink under the bright lights of the studio room, “i got to feel your boner against me just now. just because i got hypnotised doesn’t mean i forgot that shit.”

blushing red, brian darts out of the room in a hurry, leaving jae laughing away in his demise.

as he rushes down the stairs, however, his mind snaps back to reality. phone in hand, he immediately types a frantic message to jae.

 

 **hottiek** so where now

 

 **jaelittle** um

 **jaelittle** he’s in the bm sector of the building

 **jaelittle** floor 5

 

 **hottiek** bm?

 

 **jaelittle** business management dummie

 

 **hottiek** don’t attack me

 **hottiek** i saved you

 

 **jaelittle** *shrugs*

 

with that, brian slides the phone into his back pocket and scurries down the long corridor to the business management wing of the building, careful to keep his steps light and subtle. he passes by the odd worker on their night shift, receives a few greetings to which he meekly responds before turning his attention back to the crowd.

the person he saw in the cctv camera earlier? sanghyun, a fellow co-worker he’d bumped into a day ago, and who had spilled iced americano all over brian’s slacks. (god, why hadn’t brian taken a hint?)

“hey, uh, kang.”

the voice causes brian to swivel around, almost bumping chest-first into a semi-familiar face. matthew, he recognises, from yesterday. “uh, yeah?”

matthew scratches his head. “any idea why we’re on lockdown? even security can’t hack it,” he quizzes curiously, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

playing the dumb card, brian shrugs. “not sure, man. oh, by the way, have you seen sanghyun around here? i need to give him my assignment to proofread after i get it.” the lie tumbles from his lips, nonchalant, so casual that matthew replies with an “oh, i think he went back to his office. said something about an emergency task from the manager”. with that, brian hurriedly thanks matthew before bolting down the hallway, leaving matthew a little bit more baffled than before.

 

_ding!_

 

 **jaelittle** yknow i called police already right

 

 **hottiek** good

 **hottiek** i called backup alr too

 **hottiek** secured the area alr

 

 **jaelittle** one thing

 **jaelittle** why you?

 

 **hottiek** what?

 **hottiek** i don’t get you

 

 **jaelittle** why risk you? aren’t there other people to help you with this mission?

 

 **hottiek** good point

 **hottiek** too many cooks spoil the broth

 **hottiek** so they send me to initiate the task

 **hottiek** then now i call backup

 

 **jaelittle** smart

 

 **hottiek** thnx boo i came up with that plan

 

 **jaelittle** i take it back

 

brian chuckles a little before rounding the corner.

 

 **jaelittle** eh

 **jaelittle** i think jyp is coming to my radio station

 **jaelittle** because i’ve been looping songs for forever

 **jaelittle** on the radio i mean

 

 **hottiek** then tell him whats going on

 

when brain ducks into the next hallway, the phone is slapped out of his hands and in a flurry he’s slammed against the wall by a tall figure, pockmarked face. lee sanghyun hovers above him, lips curled into a snarl.

“you think if you catch me it’s game over?” sanghyun hisses into brian’s face, whose arms are now trapped above his body. (ironic, he knows.) “you’re so wrong, brian kang. your plan will fail, everything you’ve planned will backfire on you. the last state in the country is being taken over as i speak.”

underneath the grip, brian wriggles mightily, attempting to escape, but sanghyun’s weight on him is so heavy and so strong that brian has to gasp for breath. “y-you think?” brian manages to choke out.

sanghyun smirks. “think about it, kang. i know you’re pretty smart.”

“so i’ve heard.” with that, brian uses his left leg to trip sanghyun’s legs, causing the other to topple backwards onto his arse - ouch, brian knows, before tackling sanghyun down and locking his limbs down. as sanghyun writhes strongly underneath him, brian clicks his tongue to activate his earpiece. “yeah, take over now. floor 5, dark corridor. just follow my tracker.”

as brian’s focus pans to rapping out directions for fellow backup to come to him in hot pursuit, his grip on sanghyun loosens just enough for the hijacker to struggle out of brian’s hold. before brian can react, sanghyun’s hand reaches for an object in his pocket and aims a taser at brian.

“fuck no-”

a jolt shocks brian half to death, and white blurs his vision as he falls with a thump onto the ground. _i can’t feel my fucking dick oh my god-_ helplessly, all brian can do is listen to the squeaking of footsteps hurrying away, followed by - thankfully - backup hollering as they rush past brian to get at sanghyun. someone hurries to brian’s side, kisses his cheek, “can you get him up, please?”, brushes his hair out of his eyes.

the last thing brian sees before he passes out: jae’s small smile, on his lips, mouthing the words, ‘you did it.’

 

**_______________**

 

 

**wednesday, 14th july 2088**

**[ 07:32 ]**

 

“why the fuck can’t i move?” brian whines helplessly as he stays immobile on the bed in a white-washed hospital room, floors and ceiling scrubbed to the point that the ammonia almost kills every thought in brian’s head. beside him, jae sighs, squeezing the boy’s hand a bit before lifting his hand to brush hair from brian’s eyes. _ah, sweetheart._

“you know why,” jae murmurs softly, letting his fingers graze the side of brian’s head. (brian wants to lean against the hand.) “that taser ain’t one from the 2040s, baby. that jolt almost killed ya.”

“oh, and you’re soooo happy to see me alive-”

jae cuts him off with a small kiss on the lips, brief, but brian can feel the grin on the other’s lips, even after he pulls away.

at that moment, the door clicks open.

“ _sam_ ? what the fuck?” jae’s mind swirls as the short, white-haired boy bustles into through the doorway, files piling in his arms with papers at the edge of flittering to the ground. jae wants to knock his head against the fucking wall. _first, a stranger i met four days ago turns out to be a spy. secondly, said stranger kisses me after four days of knowing him. thirdly, people are getting taken over and being turned into some stupid army by some shitty dipwad. and now, fourthly….?_

jae ponders what the author of his story is even thinking about as she charts up jae’s life. (let’s be real, only a ‘she’ can conjure up fleeting-romance-turned-thriller in, say, four chapter of his life. suddenly getting up at 5 in the morning seems so easy, so comforting, compared to this chunk of a life he’s getting.

sam giggles a little before awkwardly sitting down on the seat beside jae. “uh, hey jae. about time you knew-”

“-are you one of those dudes who puts tracker pills in people’s coffee cups and gets tased by villains, like, every month or so?-”

“-uh, no?” sam blinks innocently. “i’m just a good ‘ol radio presenter by day, forensics team member by night, and full-time actor. bet you didn’t see me coming,” sam chuckles, before allowing his eyes to scan brian’s condition. “brian kang, you have been victimised!”

still numb, brian rolls his eyes. “fuck you.”

“by a model T0045 evolution taser, no better weapon than that,” sam comments pepperly, his eyes lit with amazement. “how did you not die? oh, wait, i can answer that question.” with that, sam digs deep into his jeans pocket to pull out a velvet box, flipping it open to reveal a pair of contact lenses. “turns out the taser wasn’t put at max, just a minor, oh, 8.5 on the richter scale-”

“-sounds like death to me,” brian snorts.

jae’s mind is still a bit of a muddle at this sudden realisation (sam? kim woosung? in a forensics team? the dude who cries over too-hot double-shot latte? unbelievable) but realisation gradually seeps in. “how did you know that…?”

“besides the fact that backup did catch lee sanghyun, there’s been a sort of a plot twist,” sam cringes a little, biting his lip. “this is where brian screeches his head and grumbles for a week before i can explain myself, by the way, so keep your heads on.”

“ _what_?” brian hesitantly starts, but before he can bombard sam with any more questions, the boy pushes his glasses up and shows them the contact lenses.

“we found these on lee sanghyun. here’s the problem.” sam sets the pouch down, begins rubbing his hands together on his lap. “when he came to after we knocked him out, he was dazed. the last thing he remembered was walking down an alley on his way home from work about a week ago. we ran forensics on him, we broke through the firewall on the lenses-”

“you’re telling me sanghyun was just a victim hypnotised, too,” brian finishes, his voice dull and low, expectant. of _course_ this was all it would come down to.

sam opens his mouth before closing it.

brian’s visibly shaking with anger as he fists the sheets laid over him. noticing this, jae wraps a hand tightly over brian’s own, urging him to calm down, but brian’s not having any of it. “you’ve heard that line before, haven’t you? didn’t i say the exact same fucking thing last week; didn’t i voice that same _fucking_ suspicion when we were planning how to-”

“-look, brian, i know you’re mad,” sam pleads, now trembling. (there’s the woosung jae knows well.) “but shouldn’t we just go through the lenses and maybe track down the source, the main hijacker? we should take this lightly, and-”

“-shut the hell up already, sam, you know the guy’s going to cut ties and ward off your hacking into his whereabouts. the guy's pretty fucking smart, if you haven't realised, ” brian hisses, his voice laced with venom, before raising his voice even louder. “ _this_ ,” he waves an arm dismissively in the air, almost smacking jae’s head in the process, but doesn’t seem to notice as he continues, “is for what? all this stalking after jae and planning and fighting and tracking down, to nothing but two pieces of glass that will get us no-fucking-where? what was all my effort for? was this useless?”

in his heart, jae realises, is a little pain. like a bird pecking insistently on the glass pane; if it pecks for long enough, hard enough, it might just leave a mark. not a beautiful one, at that. _what was all my effort for? was this useless?_ so was meeting jae useless after all? another save-and-run, and nothing more? what happened to confessions and kisses?

brian blabbers on, anger fuelling his veins. “and i don’t know about you, kim, but look here: the entirety of seoul is in fucking danger, and just because i stopped the message from getting through yesterday doesn’t mean that the hacks won’t stop. they will, and we don’t know shit, we don’t know what to do.” his voice trembles with utter, complete frustration, almost seeing black stars in his sight. “do you _think_ i have any right to feel _satisfied_ that i saved one fucking person, knowing that this will all happen all over again in another fucking cycle? do you?”

at this point, a tear rolls down brian’s cheek, and jae almost reaches out to wipe it away. almost, before brian’s words ring in jae’s head again. _do i mean nothing to you?_

clearing his throat, jae finds footing and stands to his feet, still reeling from the realisation of it all. “look, i… i think i’ll take a breather. you two can c-continue on,” he blurts out. heat rushes to jae’s face, tears almost threatening to fall.

he knows this matter of his is so pointless at such a dire time in brian’s life, in everyone’s lives, but jae is _tired_ . he’s _exhausted_ , drained to the point that he wonders if this is all just a dream, and he’ll wake up four days ago, never see brian and never get dragged into this whirlpool sucking him in for eventual death.

at last, brian sees jae, sees the hurt and angst etched in the grim line of the boy’s lips. “jae, hey, i-”

“-i should give you some space,” jae mutters so quietly, that he thinks maybe brian didn’t catch it; the boy does, but before he can protest, jae’s already stumbled out of the ward room, tears flowing down consistently.

 

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 08:59 ]**

 

jae doesn’t know how long he’s been up here.

even staring blankly out at the skylines on the rooftop hurts jae to the point that his tears never stop, drying his eyes out then wetting them again, his cheeks hollow as he purses his lips. how was it just two days ago that they’d talked together on another rooftop, all smiles and of hopes and dreams that jae didn’t know back then would get crushed?

all because he said hi in front of the wrong guy.

“jae.”

the word is a hushed tone, reminds jae of the ending of nocturne c# minor by chopin that jae likes listening to: sweet and soft and crooning after a long depressing day. but jae doesn’t turn around and wrap his arms around brian like the song would imply; instead he focuses on a cloud dancing by.

time passes by.

“jae.” this time, brian is stood next to jae, having recovered his footing a little earlier, and hadn’t even bothered calling for the nurse as he strided up the stairs in search of jae. nostalgia fills both their chests as the memory of a day only a mere few hours ago feels like forever ago.

_deja vu._

“brian,” jae answers finally, almost in a drawn-out sigh. finally, he turns to face brian. “you know, it’s okay if you need to move and everything; i’ll be fine. i’ll be-”

brian cuts him off, instead tugging on the sleeve of jae’s oversized hoodie and draws him into a languid kiss, arms wrapped around jae’s torso, eyes closed as they relish in the moment. jae knows it’s wrong, with all the sharp words rushing back to his mind and digging at his stubborn head, but they don’t compute at all as jae sighs feverishly, before lowering his head and burying it in the crook of brian’s neck.

“i’m sorry,” brian finally states, still in their embrace. “i’m sorry. i spat my words out like that, and you don’t deserve them. my words from yesterday night still stand stronger than my emotions earlier.” brian plays with the hem of jae’s hoodie, his eyes cast downwards. “you know that i’ve loved every second with you, right?”

“mmhm-”

“-you sound doubtful,” brian admits, his eyes flitting upwards to crash against jae’s. “and i’m sorry again. i just... i’m just so - so frustrated at myself. why didn’t i trust my gut instinct that this was too damn easy? i should’ve followed my beliefs, i should’ve.”

jae chews on his lower lip as he pats brian’s back. softly. “don’t beat yourself up about it. you did what you could. you’ll think sharper and stronger next time around,” jae affirms passionately, before pecking brian’s cheek. (salt from tears, sweet from lotion.) “i love ya, you know?”

“damn well right,” brian kisses jae again, persistent, hands travelling up jae’s back to tug at the hair at the nape of his neck. “and i’ll try not to move to japan-”

it hits him.

“s-shit, wait, sorry,” brian suddenly tears himself away from jae, like an electrocution. immediately, his fingers are dialling sam, and before jae can ask, brian’s already got his friend on the line.

“sam?... yeah, okay, whatever, apology accepted. look, you know jae’s glasses…” brian bites his lip. “f-fuck, yeah, yeah, i- okay, run forensics on them _now_ . he _remembers_ , he fucking remembers.” with that, brian hangs up and immediately scoops jae up into a bear hug, smacking both of his cheeks loudly whilst jae squeals.

as he sets him down, jae blurts out, “what-”

“-you remember,” brian is giddy, his eyes bright and dancing, eager and determined. “you realise something? when wonpil got hypnotised, he had no idea of what happened while he was under attack; he doesn’t remember being shaken or dowoon’s words or sungjin’s words.”

“i-”

“lee sanghyun. he doesn’t remember what happened between the time he got attacked and the time the contact lenses were removed from him-”

“-oh my lord-”

“-exactly,” brian heaves for breath, a tear rolling down his cheek. “but _you_ remember. you remember my words, you heard me, you remember everything that you did to me when you were under attack. that means-”

“-that the glasses-”

“-the lenses on the glasses are of a weaker form,” brian finishes, smile so wide it almost breaks his face. “that means your glasses might have a weaker security line, too, and we can track down the main hijacker easier; jae, come here.” they hug each other so tight jae almost can’t breathe and brian swears he busts a lung, but the two of them don’t care.

when the pull apart, jae giggles a little, grinning. _cute_. “brian. you’ve turned my life upside down, you know that?”

at that, brian’s face falls. “about that. i apologise that i dragged you into all this, that you and your friends got involved in this. i’m so-’’

“-are you kidding me? through this, i got to meet you, and that’s one hopeful thing about my life at the moment,” jae whispers, grin still there as they traipse down the stairs, hand-in-hand, the future uncertain, shaky and full of demise, but their hearts golden and glistening through, brightly, vividly.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *rebuilds fourth wall while humming* so did yall catch the reference to my other jaehyungparkian?
> 
> twitter: @softtofustew_  
> curiouscat: @softtofustew_


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which jae wishes brian alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> no spoilers, but prepare your tissues. i almost cried myself (lol)

**friday, july 16th 2088**

**[ 10:09 ]**

jae likes this rhythm that he’s settled into; that he and brian have settled into, in fact.

as he awakes from his slumber, jae grumbles, sheets still a bit unfamiliar to him as he rolls around on the bed. the bed groans away under his weight as he struggles to sit up, eyes still heavy from sleep. the tittering of birds had awoken him, and jae thinks if they hadn’t existed he could’ve slipped back into his dream…

the door creaks open. brian’s head pops in.

“you awake?” he quizzes, lips tugged into a grin. jae nods, and the other boy shoves the door open wider, letting in the warm aroma of something sizzling away in the kitchen - a wild guess being sausages - as he strides over to the bed and plops himself down beside jae. their legs naturally tangle together amidst the blankets as brian wraps an arm around jae’s torso, head buried against jae’s chest.

a moment passes.

as hands begin stroking the other boy’s hair, jae allows the silence to absorb the words stuck in his throat. _he knows_. he knows that the past two days, full of initial worry and anxiety, have bubbled down to a sort of comfort as the two set aside their current world problems and instead indulged in themselves while in waiting - jae had brought brian out on another dinner, brian had invited jae home with a soju bottle or two - it’s bliss, really. true bliss, to have each other at arms’ length and finally, finally getting to know the other as well as they could’ve in a different universe, different situations.

jae knows this bliss will end with a twist.

“today?” the word is two syllables, soft and endearing but hold so much emotion that brian bites his lip, to staunch the tear from leaking from his eye.

“yeah.” brian shifts himself to lift his head up, meeting jae at eye-level. they kiss, once, brief but full of longing, before brian raises his hand to wipe the tear away. “yeah. they issued me the coordinates earlier today, actually - around 7 this morning. small village in busan. that’s where he is.”

eyes glazing over brian’s hurt expression across his face, jae reaches his thumb up to stroke circles on brian’s cheek. “hey.”

“hey-”

“-you’ll be alright. i’ll be alright. the world will be alright, because you’re kang freaking younghyun. you’ll do good.” he ruffles brian’s hair with the hand on the boy’s cheek, letting brian giggle at the contact. (and they kiss again. once more for a bit more luck.) “okay, ew, i can taste my morning breath on your lips; it’s fucking disgusting, how are you even standing me right now?” brian has to chortle with laughter as jae pokes his tongue out.

the still morning atmosphere envelopes them once again, and jae scans brian’s face, in search of the boy he’d first laid eyes on less than a week ago. (where was he now? that first impression of him? jae knows nothing, it seems.) gone is the wild innocence those eyes had sliced through jae’s own, now replaced with repent and upset. gone is the fake smile plastered upon his face whilst in pursuit of jae himself, now replaced with a small one, small but genuine.

gone is @foxeye, the name jae had been repeating in his head for hours; now replaced with brian kang younghyun, spy specialist for the association of spy cooperatives, or ASC, by day, true and full lover by night.

it’s funny, jae thinks, how he’d only known the other for a handful of hours, in exchange for a 180 degree turn of events in his life.

arms wrapping around brian’s (broad, broad) shoulders, jae mumbles, “you’ll do good, bribri. i’m sure of it. contact me when you can, alright?-”

“-i can’t update you on what happens,” brian cuts in, his tone assertive. he softens. “i’m sorry. it’s majorly top secret-”

“-wasn’t that the point of your mission whilst stalking me-”

“-well, okay, screw that,” brian rolls his eyes. “i didn’t expect my assignment to be pretty hot, okay? falling in love was never the plan.” he flicks jae’s nose. jae scrunches it, but the lingering effect of brian’s words show in his cheeks, fire red. “i’m glad i went for it, though. getting to meet you and all. imagine if i had been assigned to some fifty-six-year-old man with a pot belly and a degree in accounting. no offence, but i wouldn’t be interested.”

jae guffaws in his whole obnoxious way, but brian finds that cute, and so he hugs jae tighter, hearts palpitating against each other, only skin and fabric the thin layers needed to be stripped away to reveal their very souls.

after a minute or two like this, jae whispers, “so can i get out of here and get breakfast already? I mean, i like cuddling, but i think the sausages outside are burning-”

“-shit,” brian all but giggles, planting a quick kiss on jae’s lips before pulling away. the loss of warmth is evident on both their faces.

jae wonders how he’d survive without brian, his warmth and hugs and voice and soul. he shivers. _don’t think like that._

brian wonders how he’d survive without jae in his arms for so long - possibly never again. he shivers. _don’t think like that._

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 14:07 ]**

in this long embrace, brian’s mind races with possibilities. he hadn’t told jae one thing - that alleged main hijacker works in an abandoned weapon-making factory, that the possibility of him dying in there is a solid 86% (as calculated and recalculated by the whole forensics team), that he’s only going in there with a team of noobs, every other major specialist hunting down other hijackers in other parts of the country, and also a cameracopter. nothing else.

brian’s mind races with _iloveyou’s_ and _sorry’s_ and _iwishwecould’velasted’s_ and _you’rethebestpersonever’s_ , but the letters die in brian’s throat as he kisses jae goodbye and climbs into the pick-up truck, the last thing he sees being jae’s expression on his face.

of longing, of hope, of home.

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 23:37 ]**

 

**_fantastic four_ **

 

 **jaelittle** hey

 **jaelittle** what does it mean when your bf/spy hasn’t contacted you in

 **jaelittle** 8 hours ish?

 

 **pirrie** he’s busy ?

 

 **woonie** he’s probably busy, hyung

 **woonie** fighting off bad guys while texting?

 **woonie** not exactly a fight scene more to say

 

 **sungdad** don’t worry jae

 **sungdad** brian’s pretty capable

 **sungdad** he’ll surely be fine

 

 **jaelittle** you sure?

 **jaelittle** i’m scared

 

 **sungdad** we’re all scared, jae

 **sungdad** but hope will guide us

 

 **pirrie** *pukes*

 

 **jaelittle** :(

 

 **pirrie** sigh

 **pirrie** jae

 **pirrie** cmere bro

 

 **jaelittle** why

 

 **pirrie** you sound like you need a hug

 

 **woonie** we’re all in the kitchen

 **woonie** frying chicken

 

 **sungdad** cmon

 **sungdad** you can’t hole up in your room forever

 

 **jaelittle** :’)

 **jaelittle** yall are the best

 

 **pirrie** im glad you still rmb us tbh

 **pirrie** all youve been talking about is brian

 **pirrie** actually no we haven’t even talked

 

 **woonie** stop it hyung

 **woonie** jae’s just in love

 **woonie** you of all people shld know how that feels ;D

 

 **pirrie** do i?

 **pirrie** hmmmmmm

 

 **woonie** TT

 

 **sungdad** stop texting and help me fry the chicken

 

 **woonie** then why are YOU texting while holding the pan

 

 **pirrie** sUNGJIN DONT RAISE THE PAN IT’S HOT

 

 **jaelittle** …

 **jaelittle** i heard a crash

 **jaelittle** yall ok

 

 **pirrie** uh sungjin dropped the pan of chicken

 **pirrie** dROP IT LIKE IT’S HOT

 

 **sungdad** fOR FUCKS SAKE HELP ME

 

 **woonie** $10 in the swear jar hyung

 **woonie** :)))))))))

 

 **jaelittle** oml

 **jaelittle** i’ll come over and help you peasants

 

**_______________**

 

**sunday, 18th july 2088**

**[ 11:08 ]**

one week.

one week ever since jae had laid eyes on a boy named brian.

in one week, everything has changed. the world jae’s known, the significance of another in his life.

at 11:09, he’ll receive a phone call. from sam. a sob will ring out on the other side. jae will hang up. he’ll slide down against the bedroom wall, quiet. brewing. like a volcano. and like all volcanoes, he’ll sputter and spit and erupt, punching the wall in violence and thrashing the room, howling and screaming “why him? why him?” he’ll kick the bed until his big toe bleeds, pull open all the drawers until they’re all strewn across the ground, fling the only photoframe of him and brian onto the floor, shattering it, the smiles laced with jae’s blood on glass.

everything hurts, hurts so _fucking_ bad, but the hurt in his heart pounds stronger than all else, and jae slumps onto his bed, his fingers tightening into fists and thumping against the mattress, sheets thrown across the room, screams resounding throughout the room.

at 11:10, jae will cry harder than he ever has in his entire life.

at 11:11, jae will wish. he’ll wish for something, anything. he’ll wish. he’ll hope.

at 11:11, the wish will come true.

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 08:58 ]**

dying has a grave effect on brian.

he’d been stupid, of course. told the others to “stay back and wait for my signal. let the copter roam the area and scan for heat of the body. then i’ll head in first. call backup at my signal”. hadn’t realised, had _ignored_ the fact that the copter was noisy overhead, like a bee buzzing overhead, a sound so familiar that wong joonho would recognise and load a gun, P657 evaluation, and aim it at the door. hadn’t thought about creeping in, had stepped on a floorboard, creaking it alive; others had thought it was a signal, called backup and with a raise of the voice of a newbie spy, had activated lasers over the front doorway of the abandoned building.

brian still remembers how the man looked: that normal, typical guy you walked past on the street until the gun went off and shattered the silence, aimed right at brian’s abdomen. the bullet had lodged itself there, its lingering effect spreading so rapidly brian saw white in five seconds flat. brian still remembers before losing consciousness, the sound of shouts and hollers, an alarm blaring off, more gunshots and screams, followed by a yowl of a grown man and the thump of the body against the floor beside him.

brian still remembers thinking about that day a week ago. he struggles to blink hard to focus on the time stamp on the corner of his lenses.

09:02

 

**_______________**

 

the ambulance doesn’t make it on time.

someone does cpr on him while waiting, breath pumped down his throat, rushing to his lungs.

brian remembers slipping further and further away from life, a black hole seemingly slurping him alive, alive, alive. darkness leaking all over, black ink staining the white paper of his mind.

then death.

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 11:11 ]**

 

alive again.

 

_______________

 

**wednesday, 21st july 2088**

**[ 21:09 ]**

conscious again.

brian keeps his eyes closed. even with his eyelids shut he sees the light seeping into his pores, sees the monitor beeping away on his left, sees the body dozing off on his right. sees the whitewashed walls and stiff blankets and life.

he fumbles to sit up. a sudden burst of pain explodes from his stomach and brian whimpers, falling back onto the pillows loudly, so loudly that the boy beside him is startled awake.

“j-jae.” brian is the first to speak, vision sharpening upon the sight of the boy, his eyebags dark and huge and heavy, his hair a bird’s nest, his lips apart and open in an ‘o’ shape, his eyes alive and dancing and thriving with the colour of the warmth of chestnut brown. alive.

“brian.” jae almost doesn’t complete the word as he leans close and cups brian’s cheek stiffly, fingers ice cold from the stupid air-conditioning, but the blood rushing to brian’s head heats the hand easily. “brian, i-i don’t know; when sam called and everything and i just… i just felt like killing myself because i thought you wouldn’t make it, i _thought_ and then sam called again and told me you were-”

brian kisses jae’s lips, mint and soda evident as jae wraps his arms around his shoulders, the feeling almost long forgotten as they meet again. _hi, hello. do we know each other? i think we do._ they part, breaths heavy, then meet again, brian’s vision hazing as all he basks in is jae, jae, jae. they’re both alive and breathing, and brian guesses hey, that’s a pretty good feat.

when jae leans against the bed, he accidentally calls the doctor, who comes bustling in alongside sam and a few strangers and sungjin and wonpil and dowoon. they part, not for long though, because jae’s fingers are still wrapped around brian’s fist, the contact of skin still hot and burning. a good burn, though. better than brian has ever thought hand-holding would be.

 

_______________

 

**thursday, 22nd july 2088**

**[ 01:45 ]**

jae managed to squeeze into the bed (near-dead spies have their perks, brian hums, as their limbs tangle together). at this point jae doesn’t really care if a nurse walks in on them making out on the hospital bed and gets kicked out or whatever, because what matters is the now and jae grins against brian’s chest. he’s glad he can hear the _badumbadumbadum_ of it again, right under his own skin.

“and then he just shot me, right there and then. pew pew,” brian imitates, voice high-pitched as he aims finger guns jokingly at jae’s own stomach, exposed from all the kissing and hip-holding beforehand. all pale skin and bones, brian muses, as he traces a finger there again, circling the belly button. “then he got pew-pewed himself, too.”

“i thought this was top secret-”

“-eh, you’re an exception, i guess,” brian shrugs casually, brushing the topic off as if he wasn’t under a worldwide association of spies tackling global issues right, left and centre. “they got him, though, so basically i wasn’t even needed,” brian sighs, rolling his eyes. “could’ve saved me the hassle of stitches and the whole ‘i-was-gonna-die-but-some-ethereal-force-saved-me-i-guess.”

jae frowns. “how’d you survive? you said cpr can’t help an evaluation gun like that.”

“probably my strong will to live long and prosper and see you cry all over my near-death,” brian jokes, but his eyes still stay on jae’s face, sombre. “honestly? it felt like… like something, or perhaps someone, had just shaken me alive again. like, let’s say you’ve got an annoying younger sibling who shakes you awake at the crack of dawn relentlessly. kinda like that, but a softer feel. if that makes sense.”

jae smiles to himself. _it does._

he doesn’t say anything, though, instead kissing brian’s lips a bit more, a while longer, before shifting closer and allowing sleep to overtake both their bodies, their dreams wild and vivid and bursting full of life and love.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yell at me:
> 
> twitter: @softtofustew_  
> curiouscat: @softtofustew_


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which jae and brian finally find home.

**tuesday, 27th july 2088**

**[ 11:42 ]**

before jae shoves open the glass door of the coffeehouse, the boy removes his gold-rimmed glasses, wiping them on the hem of his shirt before fixing them back on. as he steps into the shop, the cold air-conditioning embraces him from the hot sunshine beating down outside. scratching his head a little, he strides up to the sleek counter, the familiar girl with her newly cut bob of chestnut brown hair beaming at him, smile positively radiating.

her eyes are a crystal clear black.

“welcome to coffeebrew! i’m rania, how may i help you?” she chirps gleefully. she taps his fingers against the counter. amused, jae taps a forefinger at two drinks displayed on the counter. “double-shot latte, and-”

“-iced americano?” rania quizzes, raising an eyebrow. “you’ve become a regular here, i see?”

“yeah,” jae guffaws a little as he retrieves his wallet, eyes downcast a bit. “i mean, i’ve only started becoming a regular since less than a week ago, so does that still qualify as-”

“-for you and your friend?” rania cuts him off, and jae frowns a little. he can’t blame her, really. it’s been a whole lifetime since she’d opened her mouth, he presumes. at the slight downturn of his lip, rania cringes. “sorry, sorry, i’m still getting used to this.”

jae offers a small smile as he hands over a twenty. “you’ll get the hang of it, kiddo,” he counters casually, his smile matching the cashier’s growing one across her face. her cheeks remind him of brian’s, full and chubby. and dimples.

with that, jae promptly heads over to the single seats lining the window. whispers and hints of chatter from the other patrons mingle in the air with the soft drowsy typical coffeehouse jazz streaming from the speakers softly. he looks out the window, the city before him thriving and more alive, alive, alive than ever, people stumbling down the block in pairs and groups.

jae’s been the happiest ever in a long while.

after the attack at the abandoned weapons factory, the asc had managed to plant a truth pill in the offender’s drink and thus culminating in a plan unfolded: joonho leading the hijacking team in south korea and several other nations in southeast asia, others leading teams elsewhere around the world. they’d begun with jae’s homeland for a number of reasons, one of them being the fact that south korea had the highest rates of lens users.

that had to change.

with the government issuing a limit on the number of hours on the eyelenses, jae could see a drastic difference in all those around him: brighter and happier and more in the present, less into the future, and it warmed jae’s heart in some sort of sense. how people were beginning to appreciate the ones all around them, the ones who’d they’ve been living with without knowing one another.

 

**@idratherbedyingrn** order up, mr park!

 

the stool legs scrape against the tiled floor as jae stumbles to his feet, cutting his way through chairs and tables occupied by dozens of patrons. with that, he reaches the pick-up counter to retrieve two drinks when his eyes land on the customer in-line: all mussy raven black hair and high cheekbones and friendly smile and lanky body, dressed in a white tee and pale blue jeans. and fox eyes.

“hi,” @foxeye chuckles, his eyes crinkling with the upturn of his lips.  _ deja vu _ , jae thinks, as his throat runs drier that the sahara desert.

“h-hello,” jae stutters a little, both from the nostalgia of the moment and from how brian’s calloused palm wraps around jae’s own, grip still on the iced americano. warmth practically seeps through his pores as brian leans a little closer, lips brushing jae’s reddening ear. “your hands are quite pretty, mr park. you play guitar or something?”

_ for god’s sake and all things good. _

“y-yeah.” jae’s heart stammers and skips against the chest of his ribs as brian laughs, joyous, before placing a palm flat on jae’s back. “yeah. something like that.”

 

**_______________**

 

“what do you mean, ‘we haven’t found them yet?’” jae quotes, puzzled, as they lay across the cheap sofa back at brian’s holed up rented room, cramped but still well-formed, jae has to admit: the tv and the fridge for cold drinks aren’t that far apart from each other. his head on brian’s lap, jae’s eyes are focused on the screen playing before them, yet his mind wanders elsewhere.

from above him, brian strokes jae’s hair softly, gently, like a boy crooning over his kitten. “joonho himself doesn’t know the others’ whereabouts. they foresaw that they might get caught. plus, with his story all over the news, the others are bound to keep their defences up high,” he explains, sighing a bit as he speaks, the words heavy and doubtful.

jae glimpses up and catches the frown on the boy’s lips. he raises his head to kiss it goodbye, a smile replacing it.

they kiss a bit more.

jae sits up to straddle brian, hands loose on brian’s full hips, eyes scanning the boy’s face for signs of hesitation. none. his legs flank either side of brian, unnecessarily long and thin against brian’s broader frame. “look. you can’t beat yourself up about it. y’all will track ‘em down, believe me.”

brian shrugs. “they expect an answer from me, that’s what. strategists are racking their brains to figure out how to hack the hacking system-”

“-must be mean work-”

“-of course it is,” brian counters assertively. “also considering, that’s my job now. i don’t know one bit about strategising and planning ahead. look how i saved you that time!”

after escaping from death by taser and bullet in a hair’s breadth, the executive manager of the association had moved brian down to the strategist specialists, convinced that the spy knew a thing or two about switching the game plan up a notch to grab at the upper-hand whenever possible. sadly, he hadn’t managed to convince brian himself, who was still doubtful about the whole procedure.

hands cup brian’s cheeks as jae scrunches his nose at the other. “you won’t let them down, okay? because you’re brian fu-”

“-cking you-”

“-actually, yeah, but i was gonna say  _ fucking _ younghyun,” jae huffs, yet the colour is spread across his cheeks, and brian pinches them playfully, fingers skimming his neck at times, too.

“sure, sure,” brian yawns, still cradling jae’s face in his palms, before slowly kissing him. again. their lips touch, leading to a flurry of murmurs and deep, languid kisses after that. torrid and sweet and everything in one as jae allows his hands to slide up brian’s back under the fabric of the shirt he has on. burning and heartwarming as brian plays with jae’s hair at the nape of the neck, his hands roaming everywhere.

jae’s found a safe haven here with brian, and he doesn’t want to let it go, but he does, and he sits upright before looking at him square in the eye. the silence creeps in, stealthy, quiet, too quiet for either of them to notice until jae breaks it. “when’s the flight to tokyo?” the question is a hush, a question of longing and repent.

the other boy smiles wider, his eyes resplendent in dark brown. “i’m not moving-”

“-you little  _ bitch _ ! you said you’re going to move,” jae shouts, pouncing away from brian to land on his feet. “you’re not hiding anything else from me, are you?” his mind races. he bought a fucking  _ bolster _ and a goddamned pair of ripped jeans (25,000 won, mind you), and brian’s not moving away? beyond flustered, the taller boy smacks brian’s arm, who howls in pain and anguish. “what am i supposed to do with the farewell card now?”

“ _ farewell card _ ?” now it’s brian’s turn to be shocked. disbelief is etched all over his expression. “you bought a card for me-”

“-i  _ made _ it, you little piece of shit-”

“-park jaehyung, making a farewell card for me-”

“-i made it. like, last week!”-

“-oh my lord,” brian bursts into peals of laughter, leaving jae blushing hard, stammering over his words to begin a sentence. “i can’t believe… after i got hospitalised, they said i should stay under the radar. stay in seoul. might as well settle down here, since most of the specialists work in this city. did i not tell you?”

jae huffs, crossing his arms across his chest in defiance. “no, you did not.”

brian grins cheekily. “i  _ so _ did. you fell asleep, remember?”

(truthfully, jae  _ does _ recall a snippet of a memory back at the hospital, when they’d been going on and on and on about the future, his voice drowsy with sleep. “are you going to move for real?” jae had pouted, eyelids halfway down the journey to slumberland. before he’d seen black and dreams, he  _ does _ remember someone pecking his cheek, lips forming a ‘no’ shape against the skin…  _ goddammit. _ )

pathetic, jae slumps into the spot beside brian on the couch, exasperated. “i mean, i’m glad you’re not moving and all, but i-”

“-should i move away so you can give me the card, then?” brian quizzes, arching an eyebrow at the other’s direction. sheepish, jae bites his lip, hot red fanned across his face.

“i didn’t mean it like that, i just-” the words dissipate into nothing as brian leans over, palm on jae’s jean-clad thigh as they kiss again, the heat from each other unbearable as jae grins against the other’s lips. he yelps the second brian scoops him in his lithe arms in one swift movement, lips still locked in place as jae weaves his arms around brian’s shoulder. they go with the flow, all the time in the world. (“bedroom?” “y-yeah.”)

as they lie in bed later on, sheets a mismatch over their socked feet, brian’s arm wrapped limply around jae’s torso, jae’s eyes on the verge of flittering close, jae wonders a little to himself about the idea of fate, thinking back to sungjin’s words a while back - which, in jae’s opinion, feels like a lifetime away.

_ “if this isn’t fate, then how can this all be?” _

maybe pure luck, jae smiles to himself, before snuggling closer to the warmth of the body beside him and promptly falling asleep.

 

**_______________**

 

**wednesday, 28th july 2088**

**[ 16:09 ]**

 

**_fantastic four_ **

 

**happypill** so

**happypill** yo

 

**lovechickj** hey yall

 

**sangjean** where r you???????

**sangjean** are you safe???  
 **sangjean** you didnt call ?????

 

**do-a-deer** dont worry hyung

**do-a-deer** he probably spent the night at his bf’s

 

**lovechickj** he’s not my bf

 

**_happypill_ ** _ changed  _ **_happypill_ ** _ ’s name to _ **_sadpill_ **

 

**sadpill** whY

**sadpill** yall are alr all over each other

 

**sangjean** im surprised yall arent married yet

 

**sadpill** HYUNG

**sadpill** TELL HIM HOW MUCH YOU LOVE HIM

 

**do-a-deer** ye

**do-a-deer** then ask him to be your bf

**do-a-deer** then you can move out

**do-a-deer** and i can take your bedroom goddamned master bedroom

 

**lovechickj** nah bro 

 

**sangjean** he has a point though…

 

**lovechickj** why is it so necessary for me to ask him to be my bf

 

**sadpill** beCAUSE

**sadpill** yall love each other so much

**sadpill** it’s so disgusting like get together already

 

**do-a-deer** i have an idea

**do-a-deer** let’s force them out on a date

 

**sangjean** wait dont tell me yall havent been on a date

 

**lovechickj** we have…

 

**sangjean** youre telling me

**sangjean** he’s not your bf

**sangjean** BUT YOUVE BEEN ON A DATE W HIM ALREADY

 

**lovechickj** um

**lovechickj** actually 3 dates

 

**do-a-deer** jae needs dating classes and quick

 

**sadpill** that’s it

**sadpill** let’s go on a double date so jae can propose faster

 

**sangjean** hey what about me

 

**sadpill** oh yeh

**sadpill** i guess you can fifth wheel

 

**sangjean** fuck you

 

**do-a-deer** $15 :::))))

 

**sangjean** shut up too, dowoon

 

**_sadpill_ ** _ added  _ **_bribri_ ** _ to the group chat _

**_sadpill_ ** _ changed this group chat name to  _ **_double date + dad_ **

 

**bribri** hey guys

**bribri** what’s up

 

**lovechickj** pretty sure you can read the grp chat name

 

**bribri** sorry boo

**bribri** my eyes are only on you ;)

 

**lovechickj** i’m not even with you rn tf

 

**bribri** my phone lockscreen is of you and me babe

**bribri** so double date? who’s dad?

 

**sangjean** me

 

**bribri** oof ok cool

**bribri** where we going

 

**do-a-deer** bowling!

 

**sadpill** ice-skating!

**sadpill** go away dowoon we can bowl another time

 

**sangjean** compromise yall

 

**lovechickj** i can’t bowl OR ice skate

 

**bribri** i thought you were multi-talented

 

**lovechickj** excuse u

 

**bribri** you’ve been excused so

**bribri** can u come back :3

**bribri** miss you alr babes

 

**lovechickj** me too hehe

 

**bribri** :*

 

**sangjean** ok yall keep your whoremones down till tonight

**sangjean** i shall make an executive plan

**sangjean** since no one can decide

 

**lovechickj** we havent even casted our votes yet (?)

 

**sangjean** we shall be having a picnic beside the han river

 

**lovechickj** at night????????

 

**sadpill** let’s make sandwiches and cake and juice!!!!!!!!

**sadpill** omg im excited already

 

**lovechickj** wait guys at nIGHT?????????

 

**do-a-deer** oOH stars!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

**sangjean** yES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

**bribri** sounds good

 

**lovechickj** why babe

**lovechickj** you’re supposed to side with me

 

**bribri** was i

**bribri** sorry bro :’) i’ll make it up to you later

 

**sadpill** oOH he’ll make it up to you ;;;))))

 

**lovechickj** sigh

**lovechickj** welcome to the fantastic four fam, mi love

 

**bribri** soon-to-be fantastic five, you mean

 

**_______________**

 

**[ 18:37 ]**

“wait, who has the jui- wonpil you’re spilling it everywhere, stop!”

“am i- holy shit! shit what do i do-”

“-for fuck’s sake just calm down, we have a picnic blanket for a goddamned reason!”

“can i eat already?” as expected, the five are sat across a checked mat laid across an expanse of grass overlooking the river, glistening under the sun about to dip below the horizon. people mill about the park, some glimpsing over now and again at the group fussing over every single detail: sungjin admonishing wonpil, wonpil fake-sobbing, dowoon feeding a pigeon, brian pinching a sandwich and jae… jae scrolling through his phone.

tapping him lightly on the shoulder, brian smiles at jae. “why the down face? you seem unhappy.”

jae slides his phone into the front pocket of his jeans shyly, ears as pink as the sky overhead. “nothing. It’s just-”

“-weird?-”

“-somewhat,” jae admits, his eyes downcast. he fumbles with the hem of the picnic blanket at his worn-out sneakers. “i don’t think you’ve hung out with my friends before, right?” in actuality, jae’s just scared. intimidated by the fact that sungjin, of all people, had suggested a picnic. before brian had arrived at their apartment door, sungjin had dragged jae into the kitchen - “halfway through, dowoon will be complaining that he needs to pee, wonpil will add on, then i’ll bring them to find the toilet. then you initiate it: walk with him along the river. okay?” before ruffling jae’s (once neatly combed) hair.

brian chuckles a little before leaning into jae. “i haven’t, but your friends are seriously cool. nice to know that y’all live together even after graduating,” he comments lightly, before reaching out to receive a cup of juice offered by wonpil, passing it to jae. their fingertips brush against each other, and it’s electric. jae smiles softly.

the five of them are sat like this for about a half hour, all munching on the chips and sandwiches they’d brought along, with brian’s takeaway of sushi and sashimi a fairly delicious addition to the whole feast. light begins fading away, the starlight in the sky taking its place, its spotlight. as jae eats, his eyes are trained on the light playing with brian’s grin, like some sort of demi-god sent from heaven.

_ it’s pretty, _ he thinks.

when brian glances over at him, their eyes tell their story, dark and bright all at the same time.

_ i want to tell you something. _

_ say it. _

_ not here. not now. _

_ c’mon. _

_ later _ , jae mouths, his heart palpitating ten times faster now, a drum going haywire as brian slips a hand into jae’s own. their fingers find each other, a squeeze from brian promising of  _ later’s _ and  _ okay’s _ .

 

**_____________**

 

**[ 19:58 ]**

hand in hand, the two stroll side-by-side, the river flanked to their left. jae shudders, not from the nightly chill breeze rustling in the leaves, but from nerves, from fright, from a giddy sort of excitement. it’s happening, he thinks, and he doesn’t know what to do, what to say. about two hours prior he’d been practising a script in front of the mirror, correcting his facial expressions and minimal hand gestures.

it’s erased from his mind like a gust of wind kicking up dust.

thinking on his feet, brian offers his jacket to jae, and whilst jae protests against it, he finds the musky smell of perfume lingering on him as brian helps the other shrug into the article of clothing. they pause then, and jae relishes in how strong it feels in brian’s hold like this. ethereal.

“so,” brian finally begins, leaning against the railing. his eyes are torchlights, bright amd burning into jae’s own. “you wanted to tell me something.”

“y-yeah.”  _ stop it _ . jae regains his composure. breathe. in, out. in, out. “yeah, i… i was meaning to ask you something, actually.”

“oh?” brian raises his eyebrows, crossing his arms over his chest. “what’s up?”

_ ding! _

jae blinks twice at his lenses. “sorry, wait, uh-”

 

**_#letzgedditjae2k88_ **

 

**director** and we’re rolling

**director** what’s taking yall so long??

 

**producerpil** yeh!!??

**producerpil** we can SEE yall there

 

**mainjae** if yall shut up i will ACTUALLY tell him

 

brian cocks his head to one side, confused. “look, whatever it is, i’m alright, jae. Just say it,” he confirms persuasively, his hands now rubbing his forearms. nerves. “what’s in it, jae?”

jae logs out. “um.” he begins, the letters in his brain not seeming to connect together to form words. his heart hurts a bit more. “look, i-” he chokes on his saliva, before continuing. “i-i… uh, well, how can i say this? i…” his voice trails off, brian’s eyes squinting at him, baffled. “i wanted to tell you this for a long time-”

“-can you get to the point, babe?”

jae flushes harder. “look, brian,” he says breathlessly. “i’ve gotten to know you in less than a  month, but believe me when i say that it’s been a seriously incredible time knowing you. you’ve changed my life a shit ton, and everything’s pretty surreal at the moment. i just wanted to-”

“-are you breaking up with me?-”

“-tell you tha- wait,  _ what _ ?” jae furrows his eyebrows. “we were together  _ already _ ?”

brian frowns. “whatever, just say what you wanted to say-”

“-no, no, wait, since when were we together-”

“-no, shit, i thought we were? or am i just-”

“-wait, shut up. since when were we-”

brian shuts jae up with a crash of lips upon lips.  _ for god’s sake _ , he murmurs against the other’s lips as they kiss long and hard, grip on each other bold and firm as they melt and ingrain themselves in this moment, just them and their tireless love and a stupid miscommunication of words. which seems ironic to jae really, that his lenses light up with a familiar  _ ding! _

 

**bribri** i love you

 

as they break apart, jae sucks in a deep breath. “will you be my boyfriend?”

“i thought we already were,” brian muses softly, grinning, before pecking jae’s lips once more. brief. full of life. “but yeah. sure. absolutely.”

 

_ ding! _

 

**jaelittle** i love you too

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this whole fic has been a rollercoaster to write: from an initial idea of three chapters of fluff to seven full of angst and action. i'm sorry if i didn't live up to your expectations with the action scenes, and i do hope this last chapter made it up. y'all are literally the best!! thank you so much.
> 
> hit me up!  
> twitter: softtofustew_  
> curiouscat: softtofustew_

**Author's Note:**

> [twitter](https://twitter.com/softtofustew_) // [curious cat](https://curiouscat.me/softtofustew_) // [tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/softtofustew)


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